Inside
by olansamuelle
Summary: Sequel to Knall. Finally, Lois and Clark embark on their most personal challenge as a couple, ignoring if they'll be able to conceive. Chloe, Bruce and the League pursue their search of Oracle's murderers and some ugly truths are revealed along the way.
1. Prologue: One Cold Night

**"INSIDE" (Prologue "One cold night")**

**DISCLAIMER: **Not mine.

**WARNINGS: **Not really, no. But when needed, there will be chapter warnings (so far I can't think of any).

**AUTHOR'S NOTE: **You might find the prologue familiar, it uses a scene from _**Link**_'s 7th chapter as source.

**IMPORTANT NOTE: **For those who don't remember all the events having taken place in the prior stories of the arc (**_Link_** and **_Knall_**) or those who really don't want to read them but are enjoying this one, there's a complete account on characters and events happened so far more than enough to get a fresh start at the end of this prologue. Includes, like the stories, spoilers for Smallville Season 8 and an indirect mention regarding season 9's episode _'Kandor'_. All canon concerning Smallville goes up until 8x22 'Doomsday' and occasionally mentions things from Season 9. For those who have not read Link or Knall, take into account that the Parachutes Arc is set in an alt. Smallville future, set in 2020.

*

This story ranges from the moment _**Knall **_ended, the night of July 14th, 2020, right after Clark and Lois find out about Chris, until the morning of August 30th, when _**Inside**_ closes quite a few doors and sets the scenario for the series conclusion, _**Parachutes**_, to take place.

*****

**The Clocktower, Gotham City. 29th May 2020.**

_My heart's beating faster. I know this rush of adrenaline all too well. Dinah would probably crack up at me for getting hormonally high by sitting in front of a computer._

Barbara smiled at the thought of her best friend, and trying to relax her body, she breathed deep and let out a long sigh.

"Fifth IP wasted in two hours. I must've broken a new record," she mumbled. She had circumvented all firewalls from Lex's security system and had just downloaded an important pack of intel. She started decrypting when her phone rang. As alphanumeric information appeared on the screen she discriminated the useless data from the potentially useful one. The first set of information to appear were coordinates and time spans. Looked like Lex had a wide network of facilities that he used at random. She stocked that intel apart; if those locations had already been used, the information would be pointless right now. While she worked on that, she heard a phone ringing and took it without checking who was calling.

"Oracle."

Her decrypting software caught a set of image and video files. She tried to open them.

"Babs, you're talking through your private cell."

Dick's voice took her from the screen for a second, making Barbara realize her mistake. "Dammit! I'm sorry, Dick, I'm just in the middle of something."

The files did not open, so she typed a few commands. She would not get a clear visual, but at least maybe one or sneak peaks of the records, probably from surveillance tapes. Barbara didn't quite listen to Dick, but she knew he'd said something about Donna and the mission, so she continued the conversation casually.

"Donna wasn't overreacting when she talked big," she said while she typed. A few seconds later, one of the videos started to show something. "Dick, I have to go."

"What is it, Babs?," asked Dick recognizing the change in Barbara's tone.

The video file she had cracked showed the surveillance tape of one of the cameras inside what seemed to be Lex's lab.

It was a pan-tilt-zoom camera, so she had a complete visual of the space, and the state-of-the-art informatics' infrastructure was not what caught her attention. Her eyes focused on two pods standing in the middle of the room.

She held her breath as she saw two human forms inside them. One of them was an adult woman; but the other one seemed to contain a young man, a teenager.

Spending more time in trying to get a clear visual on their faces would be reckless, and Barbara's mind worked like clockwork to quickly prioritize; it was utmost important to secure the intel. There would be time to check it later.

Mumbling an 'I love you' to Dick, she placed the phone by the keyboard and shut all the Internet connections as well as her security servers, hoping she had been fast enough to avoid having to blow up her headquarters for a third time.

Satisfied, she went to grab something to eat. She may not be showing yet, but the baby was starting to claim its space and needs inside her body. Yes, it had definitely been a good idea to call Chloe. Time for her to seriously slow down, she had earned it.

Hooboy, Dick and Dinah were going to spoil her rotten. That? Oh, that was going to be tough.

***

**AUTHOR'S NOTES: **There is a record of Barbara blowing up her quarters at least twice if I remember correctly. The current Clocktower, however, resembles the original one.

**MUSIC INFO: **Björk '_Headphones_'. Perfect to imagine Babs alone in the Clocktower with all those computers around. As soon as I leave a link to the music, will post in author's notes.

**_*****_**

**_PARACHUTES ARC: THE CHARACTERS AND MAIN EVENTS SO FAR_**

**_Lois _**and **_Clark_**, unmarried (just because Lois doesn't want to) but forever in love; working on the Daily Planet since like always. Mainly following Smallville, but with a few comic canon events, the main one being **_Chris_**, biological son of Zod and adopted by Clark and Lois almost as soon as he got to Earth (which in reality means as soon as Lois was convinced she wanted to give it a try). Lois still carries a great pain due to the loss of Chloe, more than a decade ago, at the hospital from the severe wounds inflicted by Zod.

Suspecting that a returned Lex, surprise candidate to the current Presidential elections, wants more than the mere fact of living inside the White House, Lois has a nasty public encounter with him during a public rally (**_Link_**), which leaves her out of the follow-up of the campaign and the candidates at the Planet, but otherwise completely engaged in digging out all the dirt concerning Luthor. All overprotective on her, Clark asks her to stay out of it, because there's already have been a death related to this, and he'll do it even asking Oracle for help. He believes that they need to catch some murderers before Lois can get to any information available. And amid all this chaos, including also a job offer from Perry about some foreign correspondence in investigative journalism, Lois' biological clock decides to start ticking. So after a lot of thinking and talking, Lois and Clark decide they are going to try to have a baby. At that moment they receive a call from Ollie: they have located several Luthor facilities, and Chris was being held captive in one of them. **_Inside_** starts with them going to the Watchtower to visit Chris.

**

**_Ollie_**and **_Dinah_**, married and in love to the very core. Ollie, following a possible evolution from Smallville canon, has become the leader of the JLA. Friend to Lois and Clark to infinity and beyond, still acts as the hero Green Arrow, but his role as the Leage's head strategist also gets him off the field to assign teams and design protocols. Worried about the well-being of Dinah, who has just lost her best friend, he's there for her no matter what. He is the one who helped Chloe disappear from Smallville (see Chloe's profile below) and who supported her in every possible way. Dinah has only been a few episodes in Smallville, so her past in here is mainly from comic canon (_Green Arrow_ and _Birds of Prey_). Works in the field, and together with Ollie and Clark, is one of the few aware of Oracle's new and secret identity. Loves her husband, loves her friends and while mourning and dealing with the loss of her best friend Babs, has had a key role in Dick's and Helena's road to recovery from their loss. Inside, she's still reeling from the pain of Babs' death.

**

**_Chloe Sullivan_**, aka **_Ella Hunt_**, aka **_Oracle_**. Thinking it was the best way to protect her beloved cousin Lois, after all the turmoil coming from Doomsday (including Lois disappearing and Chloe thinking her dead and of course Jimmy's demise) and almost dying at Zod's hand (out of Smallville's 9th season, in here the real Zod comes with the orb, causes havoc and tries to kill her), Chloe decides to fake her death and get away from Metropolis. She is helped by Ollie and asks him and Clark to respect her decision. Over more than ten years there is no contact with Clark, and all relationship with Ollie is strictly professional. Due to the loss of a leg when she is attacked by Zod, Chloe spends her first months after her faked death in Gotham, where she meets at the hospital a woman named Barbara Gordon, ignoring that Barbara, also known as the first Batgirl, is Oracle, the older version of Chloe's Watchtower, stationed in Gotham City. And also ignoring that Barbara knows who Chloe Sullivan is, and is currently working with Batman in trying to know more about this new emerging group of superheroes calling themselves the Justice League. Both women will eventually develop a good friendship, and even when Chloe finally moves to London, assuming the identity of Ella Hunt, she helps Oracle from time to time. At the beginning of **_Link_** we learn that due to happy personal circumstances affecting Barbara, Chloe is going to take over Oracle for a few months. Barbara's death changes everything, and Chloe makes the decision of going back to the States, to Gotham City, assuming Oracle's identity permanently, accepting Ollie's offer to work for the League full-time and focusing on trying to find out what is Lex planning with both his meteoric political career and his clandestine laboratories, the last of which yielded the body of a kryptonian boy named Chris. She still knows it is not safe to go back to Metropolis, but, once more in order to protect Lois, she talks to her as Oracle trying to get her cousin away from the danger a mission in diapers dealing with Lex Luthor and at least three mysterious assassins poses. She discovers that the kryptonite is an element with the similar atomic structure than uranium thus explaining the high levels of radioactivity no doubt responsible of the fast effects on kryptonians. Her current assignment is to work with Bruce in both solving the case of Barbara's murder, for which she ultimately needs to decrypt all the information downloaded the night of the crime, and finding out what's been going on at Luthor's facilities, so the final goal, getting Lex behind bars once and for all, can be achieved. Maybe then she can think of coming back?

**

**_Barbara –Babs– Gordon_**, **_Oracle_**. Unknown to Smallville world, but undoubtedly (IMHO) the mirror in which SV writers looked when they decided to make Chloe kick-ass-Watchtower. She rocks. Daughter of Commissioner Gordon and the first Batgirl ever until The Joker shot her, leaving her paraplegic and tied to a wheelchair for life. She found her way to make a difference again: she became Oracle and founded a group of women who would go throughout the world in all kinds of missions. It all started when she recruited Dinah Lance, aka Black Canary, who would eventually become her best friend. Her love life is also full. She's happily engaged to sweet, cute Dick Grayson, aka original Robin, aka Nightwing, and recently discovered she was pregnant, so she's going to start taking things easy until her friend Chloe Sullivan takes over during her maternity leave. She's working on surveillance on Lex Luthor as a personal request from Superman, and during a mission where she leads a few members of the League (**_Link_**) she discovers something very, very big. Before compromising anything she secures all the information, but a minute too late. Fatality occurs and Babs is murdered, leaving her friends and family desolate and with a very well encrypted set of highly valuable information, now left for Chloe to decipher.

**

**_Dick Grayson, Nightwing._** Completely and utterly in love with Babs, he's the happiest guy on the planet (Clark is the happiest guy on the universe). Her death leaves him crushed, inconsolable, desolate and without a reason to live, but unwilling to commit suicide. He opts to carry on through a path of vengeance and violence against which Bruce advises him. Only with the help of Dinah he will start, timidly, to move on amongst the pain.

**

**_Bruce Wayne, Batman_**. I know there are many reasons for not having Batman in Smallville (I think same as Wonder Woman), but he's too good to avoid here. Batman is a nice counterpart of Clark, he's not called the Dark Knight without reason, but there is something nobody can deny him, and that is his sense of Justice. He will always do the right thing, as painful as it sometimes can be. For those not reading comics, I think he resembles a lot the Nolan-verse version of the hero, especially the second film. So, deeply hurt by the death of Barbara, for him, for Dick and for Babs' father, he is determined to find her murderers, for what he tells Ollie he will step out of the League so he can use all of that time for that and leave the group's resources available for other matters until he comes up with the identities of Barbara's killers. Ollie will assign Chloe to work with him, because of the Luthor involvement, knowing that wherever Lex is, things get very messy. Bruce cannot avoid the feeling that Clark, who had asked Barbara to investigate him, is partly responsible for her death, and if this is proven, he'll take any necessary measure to have Justice served.

**

**_Lex Luthor_**, Superman's nemesis. Obviously did not die in that explosion (Smallville 8x14...ugh) and made a return sometime in the future (Parachutes' past), taking back his company but not the Daily Planet, that Tess Mercer had sold to Ollie, who's the actual sole owner. He's decided to take over the White House through the political via and is doing quite good in the Presidentials so far, including a marvelous first rally in which he had the pleasure of verbally beating Lois Lane herself, although later he is unexpectedly punched back by a random civilian also attending the event (**_Link_**). Thanks to his seemingly flawless surveillance system, he detects the so-called Oracle and prepares a trap, both for her and the League, who are close to finding out about his secret experiments. On a brilliant strike, he misleads the League and murders Barbara Gordon, who he believes is Oracle. Continuing his plans, that include playing the panic card once he's leading the States through biological threats, he has a set back when unexpectedly a covert triple mission of the League discovers three of his labs, one of them keeping the kryptonian boy known to the world as Chris Kent.

**_Helena Bertinelli, Huntress, _**second member recruited by Babs for Birds of Prey. With violent tendencies, after Babs' murder she decides to step out, aware that if she doesn't, sooner than later there will be a blood bath. She gets some help from Dinah, and by the end of **_Knall_**, just like Dick, she seems to be doing much better, and is finally back in track.

**

Along the stories, **_other characters_**, familiar to Smallville or just from DCU have appeared, mainly as supporting roles in missions or light chats. Some of them (a few reappearing in **_Inside_**): **_Martha Kent_** (retired from the politics, currently living in Smallville), **_Perry White _**(chief editor of the Daily Planet. He follows comic canon, but I'm sure that when Smallville brings him back, he will be very much alike); **_Lana Lang _**(currently living in New York and leading her own life, provides Lois with all the information she has on Luthor, helping Lois in her investigation –**_Knall_**–);**_ Donna Troy aka Troia_** (comic canon, sister of Diana Prince, living in NY, works with the League and the Titans, a subsidiary of the JLA*; very good friends with Dick); **_Bart Allen_** (follows Smallville canon, so in 2020 he's older than in the comics; appeared in **_Link_**); **_Diana Prince aka Wonder Woman_** (very much indeed, comic canon. She calls Clark Kal (which pisses Lois off a lot), and has a very deep respect for Miss Lane; she's a very serious but sweet woman, fierce warrior when needed; sister of Donna Troy, good friend of Dinah; member of the League); **_Commissioner James –Jim– Gordon_** (Barbara's father, head of Gotham City's police department. Despite the pain, he has, like Batman, a very deep sense of justice, and he's the one telling his caped friend that he must control the increasingly violent Nightwing. Batman has an enormous respect and affection for him); **_Zinda _**(the third mobile member of Birds of Prey, pilot, made a few appearances already), **_James –Jimmy– Bartholomew Olsen _**(younger brother to Smallville's Henry James –Jimmy– Olsen, tragically dead in Smallville 8x22. Following Perry's request on finding a new photographer, Lois goes through several resumes her boss has given her, mainly because the new recruit will mainly work for her and is almost out of breath when among the solicitants she finds a smiling freckled face reading James Olsen (**_Knall_**). He's had no further role so far). **_Tess Mercer_** (she has not appeared personally, but has been mentioned quite a few times. A merge herself of comic/movie characters, Tess is from Smallville and Smallville only, so full SVcanon there. According to **_Link_**, she disappeared from the face of the Earth once Lex returned, probably demoted to seek tropical plants in some island); **_Isabel Parker_** (random invented civilian confronting Lex in his rally during **_Link_**, and pissing Mr. Luthor off a lot).

**

***JLA: **is what could become in this universe. Being Ollie the head and founder, and being Ollie someone used to manage a big corporation such as Queen Industries, the League is a very well oiled engine, with hierarchies, meetings and protocols, contracts and subsidiary groups in areas where permanent bases are needed, such as the Titans, who also have their fair amount of independency. Members have total liberty to lead their lives and choose their own missions, but unless they have good motives, they will always be available for the League. No one has complained so far and the system works almost perfectly.

**

And I think this is pretty much it. If anyone sees something or someone missing, please do tell, my reviewers know I'm always happy to clarify and explain any doubts. Thanks and enjoy the story.


	2. Chapter 1: Makes Me Shake

_**CHAPTER 1 "MAKES ME SHAKE"**_

**DISCLAIMER: **not mine, as if we didn't know already.

**NOTES:** Back to the present: 14th July, 2020. Night.

***

Chris was back.

As much as her mind struggled with fear of that reality escaping her life like sand grains through her fingers, the overwhelming array of sensations inside her told Lois it was real. But she knew the tension would not go away until she saw him with her very eyes.

Clark, anything but oblivious to her distress, had tried to calm her with reassuring words of their kid safely kept at the Watchtower, under the best of cares. Fine, she had said. He would be brought back to Earth as soon as it was safe, he had replied. And before he even dared to suggest the possibility of her waiting until then to see him, Lois had told Clark that she _would_ go with him to the JLA's lunar quarters. It had not been a request. Neither Clark nor Ollie had dared to digress, and immediately after calling them, the head strategist of the League had set in motion the visiting protocol; only League members knowing Superman's human identity would have access to Medical Bay, and Lois would be allowed clearance only in certain areas.

Chris was back, and for all she cared, the rest of the world could go to shit. With Lex Luthor at the head of the herd.

Not even the dizziness after the travel to the Watchtower shook away her determination. She was angry with Lex, angry with herself for having let that happen, and nervous and eager to see her foster son after four years of absence. Her racing mind was flooded with past warm memories and with the knowledge that once she made sure the kid was alright, she would put all her personal resources into hunting and trapping, once and for all, Lex. God damned her if she didn't. The bastard would know how implacable Lois Lane could also be.

***

Clark hadn't said a word, knowing Lois' mind was probably enough agitated to add anything to it. Silently, he walked with her through the corridor leading to Chris' room. Approaching the widened space designed as a waiting room, where Ollie, Diana and Emil were waiting, he took Lois' hand in his, receiving a reassuring squeeze that calmed a little the fast beating of his heart.

Emil was the first to approach the couple, arm extended to greet them. "Lois, Clark, welcome," he said giving Clark a quick handshake.

"Can we see him?," asked Lois disregarding any formality with the people gathered there.

Ollie was the one to answer. "Of course," he said. "Dinah's in the room with him waiting for you both."

"Lois, hon, why don't you go there while I ask them what happened?" Lois nodded. "Diana, would you...?," he started saying.

The amazon smiled. "Of course, Kal. This way, Lois," she said indicating with her extended arm the way to the room.

Lois gave Clark a kiss. "I'll see you inside." And she walked away with Diana.

Once she turned left to the corridor leading her to the room and Clark could not follow them any longer with his normal vision, he turned his attention back to the two men standing in front of him.

"What happened?," he simply asked.

"We don't know the details yet, Clark," said Ollie. "I just took him out of there as fast and safely as I could"

"Whatever they did to him, he was taken good care of, Clark," said Emil. "I've just run some preliminary tests and it's too soon to tell anything, but I can safely say he's healthy and strong. I don't know how long he's been in that pod, but all the wires attached to his body kept him not only nurtured but also with his muscles active and in shape. We've started to revert the induced coma he was put in, but when he wakes up he will feel like he went to bed yesterday night."

***

Diana placed a hand on Lois' shoulder while they silently walked towards Chris' room. "Are you all right, Lois?"

Lois didn't turn her head, and her tone was as serious as her face looked to Diana's eyes. "No," she said. "I'm light years far from being all right, Diana. I'm pissed, I'm furious, I'm worried and happy at the same time. But all right? A snowball in a bonfire has a better chance of being all right in this moment, believe me."

Diana tried to reason in order to keep her calm. She felt an amount of tension boiling inside that she knew the reporter didn't deserve. "He's alive and with you, isn't that the most important thing?"

"I still have to go through a lot of anger before I get there, Diana. Lex had him wired to some machine for who knows what and for who knows how long. He was a twelve-year-old kid, for God's sake! The sweetest boy you could imagine. He didn't deserve it."

The corridor towards the room suddenly seemed ridiculously long. Diana knew Lois enough to try mere comfort words; it would be like trying to make a dent on a diamond using a pencil. But she was also convinced that Lois would leave all her rage behind her eyes as soon as she entered the room. While she typed the entrance code she heard her taking a deep breath before stepping inside.

Yes, Lois would now focus on Chris, and the rest of the world would have to wait. Closing the door back, Diana turned and left to the main hall.

***

The sounds of the machines to which Chris was attached produced each a particular yet constant sound, a rhythm proving his stable condition. Knowing that, Dinah found them relaxing rather than annoying.

She had met the boy four years before, when Clark found him on the ship and took care of him together with Lois as his legal guardians, granting him a human identity as Chris Kent-Sullivan.

No longer living in Smallville and using Bruce's help, it hadn't been too difficult to make him Chloe Sullivan's son and build up a story about deceased legal guardians. The mother was dead, so no questions were asked regarding that front, and the only indiscretions, dwelled on the couple's obvious problems of infertility, because no one could believe that such a pair would not have a baby of their own. Knowing about those assumptions had pissed Dinah off; couldn't people simply think of adoption as a voluntary choice? Granted this case was different, but hell, it would put a whole lotta pressure off Lois' shoulders. She'd seen her face when she was asked about when they were planning to have kids, and as good as Lois was concealing emotions, she always failed at that one.

Lois' and Dinah's mutual relationship had improved exponentially since those rough beginnings, and Dinah had to admit to herself that the only reason preventing her from being jealous of Lois Lane, one of her husband's past lover, had been the profound love the reporter felt for Clark; there was nobody else in the universe, literally, than Clark for her, and it worked both ways. Lois was the kind of woman you wouldn't want near your beau. Ever. Not because of her doing anything. Just because of her being who she was. And Ollie had not always been the loving and caring and faithful husband he was now. So once she got passed that rivalry, she let her defenses down, and she never regretted it. It wasn't the same kind of friendship as with Babs, they didn't have that level of confidence, but it was good enough to feel very protective of her and hating seeing her hurt. So yes, it bugged her that people could hurt Lois, even if unbeknownst to them, by asking silly questions about babies. Even more when she had seen that glee in her eyes when Chris was with them. Then, as if cued by her thoughts, the reporter entered the room.

Dinah immediately stood up to receive her. She was already staring at Chris. "He's ok, he's sleeping."

"He's in a coma, Dinah," said Lois with her eyes fixed on her foster son.

"Induced," insisted Dinah, "and he's already been taken out of the medics, so he'll wake up any moment now."

"He...he's grown up, you know? He's older," said Lois.

Uneasiness or anger, Dinah was not very sure. "Not older than he should be," she said reassuringly.

"He should be around sixteen years."

Lois' emotions were struggling to come out through her eyes, and Dinah knew that she wasn't a big fan of displays of deep feelings with anybody but Clark. As friendly as their relationship was, this was clearly a moment for her alone or with family. She turned to leave.

"I'll go get Clark."

"Thank you," said Lois absentmindedly.

Once Dinah left, she approached his bed and kneeled by his side, caressing the boy's features. Dinah was right, he looked as if he was just sleeping, ready to open his eyes any moment. "Chris," she whispered. "Sweetie, I've missed you so much. Whatever happened I'm sorry, honey, I just wish Clark and I could've done something to prevent this. I'm so sorry, Chris."

Suddenly she caught a slight movement from his left leg. Then he slowly began to stir.

"Chris?"

***

Lex's chief of security paced nervously around the room. The high ceiling, the wooden stairs, the Victorian furniture didn't make the coldness he was feeling go away. Quite the contrary, indeed. He had been summoned by Lex, but his boss wasn't there. He wondered if that was another strategy to make him more nervous than he already was. Another way to control him, as if the head of former LuthorCorp, didn't already. Lex Luthor was all about control, and he exerted it with brilliancy. And he was also a man who never took a step without knowing the direction his feet were taking.

Suddenly the doors opened and Lex entered accompanied by a man Marcus hadn't seen before.

"How long have you been working for me, Marcus?," asked Lex.

"Fourteen years, sir," responded the man.

"Your loyalty has transcended all imaginable barriers. There is not even a family of your own. Dead parents, no siblings, no wife, no kids."

"No sir." This didn't look good.

"And fourteen years at my service," repeated Lex acknowledging the other. "In that span of time you've committed murder, extortion and kidnapping, among other crimes, never questioning my orders."

"Yes, sir." Definitely not good.

"You carried all your tasks so well that you never left a trace. I've studied your profile thoroughly. There is no way LexCorp or myself for that matter, can be linked to any of them."

"That was part of my job, sir."

"And that is what makes this all the easier for me. I cannot thank you enough, Marcus," said Lex coolly.

Before Marcus could react, the bullet had already penetrated his skull. Within seconds he was dead on the floor.

"Dispose of the body, Mr. Daniel. And welcome to the team."

Lex turned and left the room. He had a busy day ahead, and there was a certain doctor he wanted to talk to.

***

The boy slowly opened his eyes, squinting them at the sudden burst of light. But he had them open enough to see a familiar face filled with a mixture of pain and happiness, looking at him.

Chris smiled. "Mom."

Lois didn't know if laughing or crying, so she did both. "Hey, kiddo."

"You...you've changed your hair. It's longer. And lighter now."

A chuckle. Relief. "It is, isn't it?"

"You look beautiful."

Lois hugged him as tight as she could trying not to melt on her son. "I've missed you so much, Chris."

As he let himself be caught in Lois' embrace he noticed a weird sensation. As if she had gotten smaller. Then he saw his hands. It wasn't Lois the one changed. It was him. "I...I'm bigger," he said.

Lois broke the hug and merely nodded.

"How...how long has it been?," he finally asked.

Lois looked at him trying to have a very reassuring smile on her face. Chris had passed from his childhood to his teens away from her, and she wasn't very sure of how to approach him, no matter how good he was, and she didn't want to scare him. "Let's not worry about that, sweetie, all that matters is that you're back and safe."

"I guess I am, right? Back, I mean."

"You better be sure of that, kid."

His smile turned into a grin, widening when the door opened and he saw the only man he had ever considered as a real father entering the room.

For a few seconds they just shared a look. Chris and Clark had a bond, due to their kryptonian nature, that he didn't share with Lois. That didn't make him love her less. It was just different. And Clark spoke through his eyes. So he silently fixed his pupils on the cerulean corneas. He saw happiness; he saw joy. And he saw the determination of finding whoever had kept him away from him and Lois. Chris felt that whatever was going on in their lives, they were just getting started.

****

**AUTHOR'S NOTES: **My first obvious choice as the League's doctor was **Pieter Cross**, but following Smallville and ignoring Comic canon (see the _Ruin saga_), I decided **Emil** suited perfectly, with no further explanation needed as to why the closeness to the rest and why does he know their IDs (although his coming in _Smallville_ was never explained).

Chris' remarks on Lois' hairstyle do come from comic canon though: those who have read the issues presenting Chris will remember a Lois Lane with short, dark hair.

I figured that changing the name of his corporation into _LexCorp_ rather than keeping Smallville's _LuthorCorp_ was the natural evolution from Lex and his ego. And after all, he did kill his father, so why keep the name? LexCorp it is.

****


	3. Chapter 2: Wide and Awake

**DISCLAIMER:** ... mmmm ... lemme think .... yeah, not mine.

**WARNINGS: **Do spoilers for season 8 count as spoilers? if so...warning, warning! There are also spoilers for season's 9 episode "_Kandor_" (seventh episode, I think) in the notes at the end of the chapter. Also a little effing.

**NOTES: **This chapter grew longer while I was editing it. All for the better I hope. This story has suffered from a lot of writer's block, even having been plotted, but these last weeks and the present editing phase can be described as fruitful. So I hope you enjoy the read, I'm really enjoying the writing.

***

Neither of the two wanting to go home until they talked to Clark and Lois, Ollie and Dinah sat in the waiting room until the couple went out of the room.

"I hate these waitings."

"Patience never suited you, Ollie, but think about it this way: being there is probably a good sign. Maybe Chris is awake and they're talking to him."

Ollie smiled briefly at her. "Yeah, you're right."

"Ollie?"

"Mmm?"

"Are we telling Chloe about this?," she asked out of the blue.

The question, though, didn't seem a complete surprise to Ollie. "I guess we should. Or Clark should. I'm not sure of exactly how much does Chloe know or ignore. Whatever she's learned about the kid didn't come from me, that's for sure." He paused a second. "But does it really matter right now?"

Dinah knew what he really meant. "Ollie, for all legal purposes, she's his mother."

"And for all legal purposes she's dead," he said, a hint of despair in his voice.

"You know that family, Ollie. Nobody stays dead for long."

Ollie looked at his wife for a few seconds. "Baby, you haven't been the most supportive of the 'bring Chloe home' cause. Why the change?"

"It's not being unsupportive, Ollie, it's believing that Chloe did what she did for a reason, a very strong one, I might add, and as much as it sucks..." She sighed. "Sweetie, I like happy endings like the next girl, but I don't think a return qualifies as viable right now. And I was just wondering how much knowing about Chris would affect her."

"I don't think she'd make a big deal about it, babe."

"I like Chloe, Ollie, you know that. I like her a lot. I don't want anything bad happening to her. Not right now of all frikkin' moments."

Ollie suppressed a sudden need of taking Dinah away and holding her, just holding her in silence, for as long as she needed and wanted to be held. Just loving her through silence. But he knew she wanted to stay there, so he took the conversation to another shade, a lighter one. "I bet my quiver Clark will find a way to bring her up before I grow up a new goatee." Dinah rolled her eyes in that funny way that Ollie loved so much. "Really, Clarkness should be a synonym for hopeless persistence, with his photo under the definition."

"Clarkness? I think you just invented a new word, archer."

"Yeah, I'm thinking about writing a Superhero thesaurus, what do you think? Green Arrow, hero linguist." Goal conquered, Ollie approached his now smiling wife and cupped her face with his hands. "He will find a way, pretty bird," he softly said. "Don't go all pessimistic on this."

Dinah read the pleading tone of his voice. But she couldn't help it. "I'm just trying to be realistic, Ollie. Lately it seems to be the only thing I can afford to be."

The pain in Dinah's eyes made Ollie hurt. These past months had been really hard on her. Trying to deal with the loss of her closest friend while playing the soothing shrink with Dick and Helena had taken its toll on her, and she needed closure too. He had been for her, and had all the intentions of keeping it that way for as long as they lived, but there was a part of it that she had to resolve on her own. He just could hope it wouldn't get too long. That didn't mean he wouldn't try everything every time he could.

"Honey," he said, "seeing how Dick and Helena have been doing the last couple of days, I wouldn't say you've just been realistic." Dinah's lips curved slightly upwards, enough to reach her eyes. "And I hope that smile of yours means I'm not doing a bad job either."

***

Words stuck somewhere inside, frustratingly frozen. That's what happens when your eyes are trying to tell you that what they are seeing is true, as difficult as it is to believe. That is what Clark was going through at that moment. He was there, watching Chris, four years later, next to Lois and grinning at him.

Unexpectedly, the helping hand came from the source of his dumb silence himself. And a single word that brought him back to land at lightning speed.

"Dad."

A grinning teenage face.

All barriers collapsed under the weigh of that word and Clark found himself smiling before he realized he was doing it.

Lois, on her part, just beamed. Oh, yes, fatherhood became Clark. He was a natural. And she couldn't help but wonder...

While two hands suddenly rested on someone's belly unbeknownst to the owner, Clark approached the bed and soon was holding Chris in his arms. He may have grown up, but he still looked tiny when compared to Clark's robust constitution.

"I'm just glad you're back," Clark simply said.

They remained like that for a few seconds. All three knew there was a lot to be said, but none wanted to break the moment. Lois and Clark in private pain, Chris in overt desire, had been pining for this reunion.

At one point Clark looked at Lois. Chris and he had a bond that the boy did not share with his foster mother, but solely because she wasn't kryptonian. That meant there were things she could not explain to him as good as he could. But there was nothing, nothing like the bond they shared themselves, a unity forged by years of learning to know one another, of loving one another. With a single look, a slight touch of a hand on a shoulder, a brush of the lips on the other's hand...they could speak volumes.

And at that moment, Clark knew he needed to translate Lois' look to Chris so the boy could understand what were his parents thinking.

"Chris," he said. "We want you to rest now, son."

The boy raised his head to look into Clark's eyes and understood. But he shook his head. "No. We need to talk, Dad" he said resolutely. And then he turned his head to Lois. "I want to tell you everything I know. Now."

***

Life had taught Lex Luthor not to trust anyone if he wanted his plans to succeed. So he had ultimately alienated himself from the concepts of family, friends and trustworthy allies for his own sake.

Family had never been a synonym for happiness to him. He had a lot to thank his late father for that. Always with a reason to despise his own son, always with some other person taking the love that was rightfully his to receive. Cancer chose the wrong parent. At private times of weakness, years ago, Lex had wondered if his life would've been different had his mother lived. He didn't anymore.

Friendship and allies? Let's see...Oliver, Clark, Lana, Tess...Everyone he had trusted or confided in at some point of his life had betrayed him. Tess had been the last straw. Granted he had used her as his eyes and ears, literally, without her consent, but she had gone too far in her revenge by taking away from him the Daily Planet, and almost succeeding in doing the same with his own company. Too far.

So nowadays he made sure he had complete control over everyone, and among his favorite captive preys was a certain doctor who had also had his own try at betraying Lex Luthor. Lex almost pitied him, ranging from his to Lana's control, then his again. After having taken the nanotechnology away from him, the only relief Lex had had, had been first row tickets to Lana Lang's and Clark Kent's ultimate separation. Oh, the pain in their eyes. After that Lana had helped the doctor disappear, but without big efforts, all presuming Lex Luthor was dead. But Lex Luthor had fooled them all, however alone and disfigured. He had had a long way to recover. Luckily for him, Lex was a very persistent person, and when helped by money, medicine really made miracles possible. In the end, he had only had to mourn the loss of a hand. Queen industries' sudden interest in developing advanced prosthetics had intrigued him. He stole some of their technology to build his own. He never really felt the loss. Not even phantom pain.

After that he had pulled all his resources and had made sure to tie the doctor, this time with a much shorter leash. Truth be told he could've found someone else, but this little man had escaped unscathed, and Lex wasn't about to let that go. The proper control means and he kept him quiet and obedient. No further problems from him.

Lex looked back at the man in question, waiting at the other side of the screen for his boss to talk.

Good dog.

Suppressing the smirk attached to that thought, Lex kept his serious stance and started talking. "Dr Grohl," he said, "I suppose I don't have to tell you about the minor set back we've suffered."

"I thought losing one of your subjects would be more than a minor discrepancy, Mr. Luthor," said the man in a tone devoid of sarcasm, merely honest.

"It wasn't what I had planned, but I can also use it in my advantage." He paused a second. "Prepare the serum for field testing."

It took the doctor a few seconds to react. "I need more time, Mr. Luthor, you know the--"

"You do what you have to do, Grohl, but make sure that it works within the next few days." Lex could see the man's throat movements as he gulped down. "Anything else?"

"Subject alpha is damaged, sir."

"Don't worry about that, I'll provide you with a new one. Any specific requirements?"

"No. We only have to calculate the indexes of relative body mass to adapt the dose to the individual. There are no gender related troubles either."

Lex smirked."Good. I do have someone in mind. Is that all?," he asked.

"No, um..."

Lex sighed tiredly. "What is it, Grohl?"

"About Alpha subject," insisted the doctor. "It's...we cannot do further studies, sir."

"I know, you just told me. So what?"

"Should we...?," asked the doctor avoiding the word his boss had no trouble dealing with.

"Would keeping the subject alive hamper the research?," he asked. "I don't recall having problems in providing you with the resources you need."

"No, sir. But...the subject is...suffering."

It really sounded logical. The doctor looked at Lex, waiting for the answer. His face was unreadable.

"I see. Can that be avoided?"

"I'm afraid not. Everything we did was irreversible."

"Then, by all means, Dr. Grohl," said Lex. And he made sure that his next words were completely understood, out of all possible doubt. "Keep the subject alive."

***

Chris took a few minutes to recollect his thoughts while his parents waited patiently for him to talk. Once he was sure of what he was going to say, he started talking.

"I recall Fort Rozz," he said. "But I don't quite remember how long was I there." He focused his eyes on Clark and Lois, trying by all means to look confident and ok with the experiences he was sharing with them. He didn't want to add to whatever anger or pain they were both feeling. "I suppose I spent more than a year. Maybe two. Time runs different there."

Clark nodded in agreement from his own experiences in the Phantom Zone.

"And then I found an orb."

An orb. Lois flinched. She was all too familiar with the concept of kryptonian orb, knowledge acquired during a time of loss and love, of Doomsday comings and Kandorian invasions. Of Tess and Zod.

"It was very strange, really," said Chris. "It was as if it was calling me, as if it wanting me to find it." He looked at Clark. "You always talked about your kryptonian father's technology, so I guessed--"

"That Jor-El had deployed some kind of technology in case I might need it," finished Clark. "It could very well be, son." Clark had only known of one way to get out of the Phantom Zone, his blood. But given the fact that different crystals had been responsible for all his involuntary visits to the prison, it was only logical that his father had designed a back-up plan. That had ended up being the purple orb, that from what Chris was implying, seemed to work both ways, and apparently there were more than one. The one found on Earth had been responsible for Zod's second coming. After the nightmare of losing Chloe, defeating Zod, all the conflicts with Ollie and the rest of the emerging League, the only true bliss had been the beginning of his relationship with Lois. They had just wanted to put all that behind and try to look into the future. Their future. They never investigated those orbs.

"Sweetie," interrupted Lois, "those orbs...they open portals."

"I know," admitted Chris. "As soon as I learned how it worked I hid it, it would've been too dangerous to use it then. I was just a kid."

_Just a kid? _

"I took that time to learn everything I could so when I used it to come back, no one could follow me "

_Does just a kid sacrifice himself in a prison when he does have the key to free himself for the dangerous prisoners don't escape? A kid??? What kind of sick, twisted insanity was this?_ Lois fought fiercely to hold her tears back. The only thing preventing her from exploding in rage was the warm feeling of Clark's hand on hers, speaking. And she took the message: what's done it's done.

"But something happened when you used it," said Clark.

"I never got to use the orb, Dad."

Silence filled the room.

"Chris," said Lois. "You're telling us that Jor-El's technology to save people like you who didn't have El's blood, lured you to it," Chris nodded sheepishly, "you kept it hidden until you felt it was safe to use it," another nod, "and before you got to do it there was some kind of force that brought you back to Earth?"

"I didn't open that portal, Mom," reassured Chris.

"Lex did," realized Clark.

"I guess?"

"Un-freaking-believable."

Clark looked at Lois, and for a minute, they got engaged in one of those conversations in which the rest of the world faded. "I guess the orb we knew about wasn't destroyed after all."

"Lex must have gotten it from Tess," said Lois.

"Tess overtly betrayed Lex, hon, I don't think--"

"Tess thought the bastard was dead. We all thought he was gone, Clark. I'm not saying she gave it to him willingly, Smallville; as misguided as she was, Tess was no dumb-ass."

Chris watched silently the conversation between them. They were obviously hurting, and it not being his complete fault, he surely felt partly responsible of it.

"Dammit Clark," continued Lois, "we should've known better than that, have we been asleep this whole time?"

Clark placed his hand on Lois' chin and kissed her forehead. Chris knew that was another of those words unspoken moments. Then he turned his attention back to Chris, encouraging him to keep talking.

"Chris, what happened after that?"

"I'm not completely sure, everything's a little fuzzy. One minute I was there and then..."

"Then you were on a lab, hooked up to--" Lois stopped abruptly, her eyes wide open in sudden realization. "...to machines inside a lab," she finally said sharing a concerned look with Clark.

"And then you were put in a coma."

Chris pondered his answer for a few seconds. Then responded. With a simple nod.

"I can't tell more. I guess I spent the rest of the time asleep."

"I still don't get it," said Lois. "How could Lex know about Chris? And how can he control whom to bring from the Phantom Zone? Does the orb come with targeting skills?," she said bitterly.

"I'm afraid Lex knows and controls more than we know, Lo." And that was probably part of the information Barbara Gordon had recovered and encrypted. They needed that information as soon as possible.

"Clark, than means more than just having or using kryptonian technology. That implies controlling and modifying it. Oh, for Christ's sake, could it get any worse?" Lois let her head fall listlessly on Clark's chest. He embraced her and talked to Chris.

"Chris, how long ago was that?," he carefully asked.

"I cannot tell, but I'd say as soon as I was brought back."

Lois took a breath. And then another one. "We last saw you four years ago, sweetie."

There was not much need to do the math. The boy had mentioned earlier about a two-year stay in Fort Rozz. Two years in a coma. At the mercy of Lex Luthor.

The room had no windows. Lois noticed, because at that moment she wanted to do anything to take away the sickening feeling taking over her insides. Looking out through the window to check on the weather would have been a life savior.

"Mom, are you ok?"

Instead of by the window, she was saved by Emil coming in. Oblivious to the conversation that had just taken place there, he smiled at the sight of the young kryptonian awake and aware. "It's good to see you awake," he said kindly.

"Chris, this is Dr. Emil Hamilton," said Clark. In his previous stay on Earth, Chris had been examined either by Bruce or by Alfred, but for many reasons they had decided to keep him as far as possible from Superman's world as they could, at least while he was a kid.

"I guess I have to thank you for being awake, sir," said Chris in a very polite and mature tone.

Lois hurt. He was trying to sound like a grown up when he should be worried about pissing them off, rebelling against anything coming out of an adult's mouth and chasing girls. A teenager should be a pain. Heck, she surely had been a pain at that age, didn't she deserve a taste of her own medicine? She'd give anything to have that with Chris. At least she'd get a feeling of reality and her son would get a taste of normalcy. He fucking deserved it, for crying out loud.

Emil returned the handshake Chris gave him. "I was merely the last piece of the engine, Christopher. You have many friends here for you."

Chris smiled and looked at Lois and Clark. "I think I have more than that."

Ok, enough. Hurting time was over. She'd be pissed off for a long time. Indeed she would use it as a motivator against Lex. But after that melting look and smile of her boy, Lois would not indulge in bitterness in front of him. She was his mom, and she would drool and be as sweet and kick-ass mother as he deserved her to be.

"You look tired, sweetie," she said.

"Lois is right," said Clark. "We'll let you rest."

"I'm fine," he quickly said, not really wanting to be parted from his parents. "Really. It is not as if I've had any sleep deprivation lately."

Emil interrupted the family moment. "I would like to make a few tests if you don't mind, make sure everything's alright." He gave Clark a sideways look.

Clark nodded. "It's probably a good idea, Chris," he said.

Synchronized with them, Lois also abided. "We'll be outside, sweetie, we'll come after he's done."

"Ok," said Chris obliging.

***

Lois let the door shut behind them before taking her anger back. They both walked in silence for a few seconds until she shared her prior realization with Clark.

"Are you thinking the same as I, Smallville?"

"If you mean how does a kryptonian get needles through his skin for long term periods without the deadly effects of green kryptonite--"

"Damn right I do."

"As soon as we leave I'll go talk to Ollie," continued Clark. "I want to know exactly what did they find there."

"There's no need to wait. Look."

Clark saw Ollie and Dinah on the waiting space. He couldn't help the smile at the thought of their friends' concern for Chris.

***

Ollie and Dinah stood up as soon as they saw Lois and Clark approaching. "Hey," said the emerald archer and fellow friend.

Lois smiled a little, also touched by their gesture. "He's awake," she promptly said.

"Thank God," breathed a relieved Dinah.

Then Lois went back to her business pose. "Ollie, you found Chris in a pod, wired to some machines."

Ollie nodded. "With needles, yes. It was hard not to notice."

"What did you do with everything you found?," asked Clark.

"Everything was immediately sent to Batman and--" he almost slipped. "...Oracle. They should be analyzing it right now."

"That's good," said Lois. "Bruce could find a distinct grain of sand in the Sahara, and I'm sure Oracle's skills will speed everything up." Too focused to notice the uncomfortable and slightly ashamed looks on Ollie, Dinah and Clark, Lois kept talking. "Dinah, I know I have a highly restricted access in here, but is there a chance of a toilet? Do you even have one of those here?"

Dinah chuckled. "Yes, of course. Come, I'll show you."

Once both women left, Clark let out a breath.

"Sorry I almost slipped back there, Clark," said Ollie. Clark said nothing. "That was a little tough, hearing Lois speaking of Oracle," he admitted. Clark made that characteristic sympathetic smile, but Ollie could see the sadness in his friend's eyes.

"Ever since I asked Chloe to keep Lois away through Oracle...It has enhanced both the feeling of betraying her and my determination to bring Chloe back."

Ollie placed a friendly hand on his shoulder. "You handle contradictions pretty good, Clark. I'm sure you'll find a way."

Clark smiled as a thank you, and then he returned to his asking, the concern about his foster soon too vivid inside. "Ollie, was there something else in the lab? Something out of the ordinary?"

"Other than the needles themselves? Not really. Pretty common stuff in Lex' world. But we took several samples of the liquid holding Chris floating, hopefully that'll lead us to find what made him lose his invulnerability."

"What color was it?"

"It wasn't blue, Clark."

***

**NOTES: **

In episode seven of Smallville's season 9 it is implied that the Kandorians on Earth, and that means also Zod, are some kind of clones. I am sticking to the version from **_Link_**, that stated that the Zod arrived on earth, once again, was the real thing.

I don't really remember if Bruce and Alfred were his sole doctors whenever Chris needed one as a kryptonian (actually I mentioned Alfred by mere logic), but I wanted to increase the level of parental protectiveness Lois and Clark had soon developed for Chris when they found him as a child, so in this arc, they spared him as much JLA and superhero world contact as they could.

I think I already said something in _Knall_: I chose to stick with Smallville's kryptonite color-coding, and if I'm not mistaken, blue in SV equals gold in comics.

**MUSIC INFO: Thom Yorke** _'Black swan'_. As the conversation with Chris unfolds, everything gets fucked up. Clark keeps calm, but Lois is very much pissed off. The bitterness implied in the lyrics of this song seemed fitting to that feeling. Tracks still not uploaded.


	4. Chapter 3: Fear and Hope

_**DISCLAIMER: **_not mine.

_**IMPORTANT NOTE: **__**supesfan18 **_suggested I provided readers with a general plotline of the previous stories. Fairly enough, I think it's a good suggestion. I have reposted the prologue with a newly included summary of characters and past events. To those who are having some difficulties following the story and do not really want to go back to either _**Link**_ or _**Knall**_, get to the prologue, at the end: I think everything you need to know about who's playing and what has happened until now is in there. Keep enjoying the read, and even though I've already replied to those who reviewed, a million thanks again; feedback feels great :)

_**WARNINGS: **_Chloe swears once.

*****

Hours flickered by like minutes, minutes like seconds. The instant the teams arrived and took all the samples and equipment to the Batcave as ordered by Ollie, Bruce and Chloe had started working on them, analyzing chemicals and processing information.

Sitting in front of one of the main computers, Chloe looked at Bruce, immersed in whatever he was looking under the microscope. He had briefly updated her on the kid they'd found, a boy they seemed to know. A kryptonian boy they seemed to know. Bruce's blatant desire to avoid the subject, rapidly dismissing it from the conversation and going back to his silent research, made Chloe wonder what exactly was Bruce keeping to himself. But another worry of bigger proportions ruled inside her head: this kryptonian boy with a human name, more than probably given by someone she knew, had been used as a lab rat, with Lex's acolytes testing on him some element somehow related to kryptonite but which Lex could control or was striving to control in order to wield it like a sword master against Clark. Chloe swore. Barbara's death was uncovering more ugly truths than she was willing to unfold.

"Bruce," she said, "do you have anything on the contents of the pod holding Chris?"

"Not on them yet," he answered, and pondered for a few seconds. He had learned that the young woman never asked things by mere curiosity, and he was willing to find any possible shortcut to get to the end of everything; Chloe Sullivan had a very valuable experience in all things concerning Lex Luthor and kryptonite, providing them with some helpful knowledge. "Should I start there instead of the other chemicals?," he finally said, turning his attention away from the microscope and onto the blonde.

"Lex has a history of using serums with refined kryptonite," said Chloe. "I was wondering if you discovered something."

"So far I haven't found any substance resembling kryptonite, Miss Sullivan."

"And anything you don't recognize?," she insisted. "Liquid kryptonite has been used with different results, my guess is that it has been mixed with a varied set of elements turning it into some sort of new substance."

"Different results?," he asked. "Miss Sullivan, I am aware of you having experimented--"

"Rather being a guinea pig," she snorted out. "Those memories are not pleasant, I tend to forgive them with great ease."

Bruce spoke softly yet firmly. "I think this is a good moment to remember."

Chloe nodded. Not only he was right, but she knew she had been completely irresponsible for having disregarded those memories. She lost no more time and re-ordered her thoughts. "Clark told me once of a serum developed to hypnotize. Used on Kara and him. And there was also this serum designed to control the mind for a few minutes," she added making an effort to make her voice sound casual and not trembling at the memory associated with that specific serum; Chloe still remembered the terror of seeing Clark, powerless, lying on the floor bleeding to death before a distraught Ollie who had just shot him.

"All of that in Luthor's hands?" asked Bruce.

"And never used directly by him. We could never prove it was him, Bruce, that's how it always is with Lex. He never gets his hands dirty." A reality that bothered and exhausted Chloe, Bruce could see. "No wonder Clark asked Barbara for help."

Bruce went still at Chloe's remark. The young woman stared back at him. Was she testing him? Did she, by any fool reason, think that mentioning that particularly sore open wound would help them any? Was it possible that he hadn't read Chloe Sullivan as good as he'd thought? Chloe's remark had left Bruce with a hint of poignancy that he had not expected, but it was no time to start looking on his back for Chloe, her work was crucial. He'd let it pass. For now.

_So I hit a nerve there._

Acting as if her comment had been a casual and innocent statement, Chloe continued talking. "He's been part of our lives since our high school days, Bruce. Lex had kryptonite in his grasp long before the League secured all remaining kryptonite on and under Earth. Now he's apparently using some sort of derivate or something," she said. "He managed to keep this Chris boy pinned with needles. You don't do that to a kryptonian, Bruce. You can't physically do that to a kryptonian."

True. You didn't. All this talk had arisen some new thoughts in Bruce's mind. "I'm going to work on a new angle," he finally said.

"Regarding the murder or the kryptonite?," asked Chloe unsure of what he was talking about.

"Regarding the reasons behind Barbara's death. The motivating factors."

"Other than Lex protecting his secret experiments? You think there's more to it?"

"Precisely the whole dimension of those experiments."

Bruce paused. This particular train of thoughts was confusing him. He still felt angry at Clark, his prior reaction at Chloe's comment a few minutes before proved so. But every single step he made in this research was telling him that whatever reasons made Clark ask Barbara to keep an eye on Lex, this man's plans were probably not just threats to the alien's race. Whatever happened in those labs seemed so far solely linked to hurting kryptonians, but that didn't explain how could Lex Luthor control other people such as the ones he was beginning to suspect, over killing Barbara. Specially one of them. It really didn't make sense, it was seriously hampering his research and it was starting to worry him.

"Bruce," said Chloe interrupting him, "what did you really mean by that? The whole dimension?"

"I'm trying to figure out why would Lex control Barbara's murderers."

Chloe gave a nonchalant shrug, more tired of Lex than she cared to admit. "He normally goes through bribing, blackmailing or blunt threatening, but in this case, having Lex giving them Oracle's head on a platter...I honestly thought that was enough for them."

Bruce shook his head. "Not with one of them," he said in a very serious tone.

Chloe knew whom he was referring to, though with everything that had happened over the last few days, she hadn't had the time to go deeper on that woman's profile. "Shiva."

Bruce nodded, but Chloe could still see on him a deep seriousness, concern and...sadness? Sadness at being right about this woman?

"I have tried to rule her out," he said confirming Chloe's suspicions, "but she's the best match I've gotten so far."

"And you don't think Lex could control her."

"I don't know what to think about her, Miss Sullivan. She's one of the few who could defeat Barbara on a fight, and Lex Luthor had to know it." _Dammit, Barbara, why didn't you tell me about Luthor, why did you have to wait until it was too late?_

"So you're suggesting Lex promised her something, or rather threatened her with something dangerous enough to have her fight Barbara to death at his command?" _This is becoming too intricate._

"Shiva is unpredictable. It could be that or it could be merely a challenge she suddenly fancied. Either way I don't think Shiva will tell us anything we want."

_Too intricate or too fucked up?_

"Bruce," said Chloe, "none of this is making any sense. First you suggest there's something bigger, then you tell me a very lethal opponent might have taken part on Barbara's death just for fun?"

"What I'm saying does make sense, Miss Sullivan, if you don't--"

"No, Bruce, I get it," she said slightly angry. "But it...I don't think it really helps. However big this is, and every god be damned evidence is pointing in that direction, it's up to us to find out, right?" Bruce nodded. "You're telling me we're back at square one?"

"No. I think you're on the right path," came the simple answer.

She calmed a little. Just a little. "Lex is too good and too powerful, we cannot take any chances and we have to play every possible card." Chloe knew Bruce was right, and there was no point in getting mad at him, despite all the mutual reserves they both had, and didn't hide from each other. "I guess time is not on our side either."

"And other people depend on our findings."

Chloe sighed. She was suddenly feeling very tired. "I know," she said placing her head on her hands in a gesture of tiredness. Mental and physical. Her stump had been hurting for hours, and the nagging dull phantom pain was starting to take its toll on her. The phantom pain always came back when she was that exhausted.

"Miss Sullivan." Chloe had her eyes closed. "Chloe." She raised her head. "We have to keep working," he said encouragingly. "Despite how misleading all this you think it is, it is not, believe me."

"It's not very heartening, Bruce. So far we still have more questions than answers, and--" and that was what bothered her the most: "I still haven't decrypted all the files that Barbara downloaded. And I know some of the answers are there, Bruce, I just know." And the niggling feeling that she was disappointing them all was an added pressure not really helping her. At all.

"Lex Luthor has a convoluted hideous mind, you know him better than I do," he admittedly said. Chloe nodded slightly. "Don't expect this to be easy."

"I know you're right, Bruce. It just sucks."

"I know," he said. "But we're not the only people hurting from all this," he firmly but gently added.

Chloe thought of Dick, of Barbara's father, of Dinah...and nodded once more. He was right. Again.

"Not just them," he suddenly said as if he had read her thoughts like an open book. She looked quizzically at him. "Your cousin."

_What??_

"Lois? What does she have to do with this? Bruce, she's not to be implicated," she said raising her voice again.

On a personal level, Bruce was not to tell her about this, indeed he had made it a point not to, but right now there were things more important than leaving secret revelations to the right person. "This boy they rescued. Chris."

"He's kryptonian, I figured Lois knew him."

"She does more than knowing him, Chloe, she named him."

"Oh," she said.

"Perhaps you should know about this boy's complete name, and you will understand."

***

Clark had known Emil for more than a decade. The doctor had saved his life on different occasions, and had always been a trusted ally, so he knew that whatever tests he was performing on Chris, they would help to find out what had happened to the boy. Lois, of course, was also familiar with him ever since Clark took the final step in their relationship by uncovering his whole identity. Emil had promptly suggested him to tell Lois about him, as a sort of 911 for Superman. Not very happy with the idea of giving Lois further worries, he had abided nevertheless. So far, Lois had never had to call Emil, and today he was glad she was familiar with the doctor, because all the anger and tension aside, she knew who was currently treating her kid, and that had calmed her down a little.

The half hour that Emil had spent with Chris had gone by fairly quick, thanks to Dinah's and Ollie's company, however, Lois and him were thankful to see that whatever Emil had to look on Chris, had taken him not a lot of time, although the brief sense of relief didn't shadow their shared concern over their son's well-being. Lois, as usual, was the first to speak.

"How is he?"

Emil was quick to respond. "It's soon to tell, Lois, but despite the loss of invulnerability he seems otherwise in good condition. But I'll have to analyze the results and probably run more tests to be sure."

Clark and Lois nodded in unison. "Could it be some kind of induced illness?"

Emil answered as honestly as he could. "I don't know yet, Lois, but so far the only abnormality he is showing is the altered dermis. Whether this is a symptom or just an aftereffect of an experiment..." Emil knew by the faces surrounding him that his words didn't make anything look any better. But he couldn't lie to them. This was uncharted territory, the kryptonian physiology was a mystery to all of them, and truth be told, so far the only real threat to Clark, pure kryptonite, was known, and had a very simple cure: take it as far as possible from him. Whatever they were dealing with right now was completely unknown, kryptonite related or not.

"I haven't told Chris anything I wasn't sure of, I think that's up to you, but if you want me to--"

"That's alright, Emil," said Clark. "Thank you."

"Yeah," added Lois. "Sorry if I'm being a little--"

Emil suppressed the chuckle. As feisty as she was, Lois Lane could suddenly turn into the most humbly honest person in the world. "It's ok, Lois, there's no need of apologies," he said smiling reassuringly. "I know what it is to be a parent."

"So, can we go see him now?"

"Of course," said Emil.

"Go ahead," said Ollie, "Dinah and I have a few things to do around here, before heading back home. The visiting protocol will remain active until Chris can be taken back to Earth safely, no matter how long it takes, so you two focus on the not so little guy and forget about the rest, ok?"

Lois gave her friend a tight hug. "Thanks for everything, Ollie."

"No worries, gorgeous," he gently said while returning the gesture. "That's what friends are for."

Lois broke her hug, and before turning her sight off Ollie, she took Dinah's hand in a sincere gesture of gratitude, making the blonde smile. "Same as my beau said, honey. Don't even mention it. Now go, I'm sure he's eagerly expecting to see his awesome parents."

***

"So, do we tell him?," asked Clark while they walked towards Chris' room.

"Tell him what exactly, Smallville? That we still don't know if he's sick or if he's just suffering side effects from whatever experiment they did on him? Gee, I don't know."

"At least he seems healthy."

"Good condition. Emil never said healthy, Clark."

Lois' words had a huge meaning behind, about which very few knew. The one thing that remained hurting her about illnesses, a pain inherited from her mother's death by lung cancer. Cancer could stop, be surgically ablated and hence cured. But cancer could remain, could grow, and even worse, could metastasize. And unless doctors were a hundred and eight percent sure that the person's body was completely free of the disease, the words 'cured' or 'healthy' would never make it to their mouths. The doctors who treated Lois' mother for almost three years never told the family those words. So he knew that, to her, Emil's words meant nothing at all. Chris could be alright, but there could also be something fatally wrong with him. Unconsciously, he grabbed her hand, hoping it would give her the strength and love she gave him back everyday just by breathing. It seemed to work.

"Let's just get inside there and figure out what the hell is wrong with our kid so we can have him back with us, ok?"

Just by breathing.

Imagine when she talks. What had he done to deserve her?

Once the door opened, Chris greeted them smiling, barreling across whatever defense mechanisms Lois had like a sword on butter.

"Sweetie," she said, "how are you feeling?"

Chris responded with the most reassuring smile and tone he could ever give her, that protectiveness he felt stronger now towards her taking over him. "I feel fine, Mom."

But you can never fool your mother. "Chris, your skin can be pierced," she said bluntly.

"But that's the only thing missing. The rest of my abilities are there," he replied. And then he hovered at will. "See?" He looked at his parents, still not completely convinced. "I thought about it," he said after a short pause, "and maybe it's because of the sun."

"The sun?," asked Clark.

"Yes. Maybe being far from the yellow sun's solar radiation took away my invulnerability. It has to do with the density, or something like that, right? Our skin reacts towards the sunlight in order to protect us or something? I just figured..."

"That's..." Lois didn't have words. In all her years, she'd never heard such a normal and logical explanation of kryptonian's invulnerability as the one that had just come out of a boy. If only it were true.

"That's partly correct, son," said Clark. "But the sun is also the agent responsible of our other abilities, so those should've gone too."

"Look, sweetie," said Lois caressing his face with her hand. "Don't you worry about those things, ok? We will go through all the possible options." Chris nodded. "And now get some rest, sweetheart, it's really late, and you look tired."

"You mean here?," he asked a little disheartened.

Lois wanted to get of there, go to Smallville, get inside a certain big mansion and break a certain person nose repeatedly. Before going to other pertinent parts. "You have to stay here, Chris," she forced herself to say.

"But--," he began protesting.

"It's not because of your health, Chris. It's because of Lex and because we need time to prepare a cover story for you. It is not safe for you on Earth right now."

"But I can take care of myself," he seriously said. Then he softly added, "you don't have to worry so much."

"Chris, we're your parents," said Lois gently caressing the sweet face again. Then she smiled, trying to sound like a cool Lois. "We worry by default."

"But--"

"Chris." Now she was serious Lois.

"Ok, Mom."

"That's my boy." Lois kissed him and he returned the gesture with a hug. "I'll come back tomorrow, sweetie."

"Bye Mommy."

Clark smiled and hugged him. "Rest now, Chris."

The boy nodded and laid down on his bed while Lois and Clark left the room.

Once they were out heading to the transporter to get home, Clark looked at Lois. She was smiling.

"I had forgotten it," she suddenly said.

"What?"

"How cool it sounded when Chris called me Mom."

The smile did not leave her lips. It didn't. Clark didn't have enough thanks to give for that.

"We should talk to Bruce, hon," she said. "He has treated Chris before, maybe he'll be able to help Emil."

"I was planning on making a quick visit to Gotham right after leaving you at home, if it's alright."

"Yes," she agreed, "the sooner the better. And Bruce will appreciate the information from first hand, even if it comes from you," she half-teased.

"Despite his natural disposition to dislike me?" said Clark, partly thankful for Lois not mentioning Oracle. She nodded. "You know he's going to blame me for Barbara Gordon's death, don't you?," he added in a more serious tone.

"You didn't plunge the knife on her, Smallville, and he should be _cum laude_ on delusional criminal minds right now. Don't you pop out the Joker when he's accusing you of crimes you didn't commit?"

_Harsh. Even for Lois. She's still very mad._ "...No."

Lois rolled her eyes. "Well, then it serves you right, Clark. Next time keep that in mind, Smallville, I don't want to have to go to the Manor to have a talk with him."

_Try to cheer her up a little, you hate to see her hurt like that._ "I wouldn't mind." _She smiles. _

"Only if you got to see it," she teased back.

_It worked. Thank Rao._

They kept walking. This time, Lois didn't mind that the corridor was so long. "All this got me thinking, Clark," she said changing the tone. It was serious, but not in a bad way. Clark wondered.

"Tell me."

"If Emil is not going to be completely up on his elbows with Chris, maybe he could be up to his elbows with us."

Clark had feared that all this sudden events would've changed Lois' mind about what they had been discussing just a few hours before. And it would've been more than a legitimate one. But now he asked, a hint of hope coloring his voice. "You mean...?"

Lois smirked. "We were having a pretty interesting conversation until Lex appeared in teletypes on TV."

Silence.

Lois turned her head to look at her silent love. "Smallville."

"Mmmm?," came the reply.

"Why is it that you have a rather stupid grin on your face?"

Clark came back down to the ground. "I feared that now, maybe, with Chris and all this new threats..." he said sheepishly only to be cut by Lois' matching grin.

"Chris? Chris will make a wonderful big brother, Clark, and if I were to live my life based on threats, I'd be seriously brain damaged and secluded in some Belle Reeve facility, with restricted visiting hours."

"You are an amazing woman, Lois Lane."

"Does that mean you'll talk to Emil?"

"First thing in the morning."

*****

**NOTES: **About Chloe's remark on Clark asking Babs help to investigate Luthor: we tend to see Chloe as this very sweet person, and frankly, it felt weird when I wrote this, but it shows quite a bit of this eleven years later Chloe, and from what we're seeing of Chloe in season 9 (which, once they stabilized the character like in episode 6, I'm enjoying quite a lot), I think there's much more of Chloe behind the cute face and tender voice. She's matured, partly becoming harder through her vital experiences, so this is a grown-up Chloe with the same complete faith in Clark and his role as Superman for humanity. If that means testing Bruce because of his, from her pov, misunderstanding of Superman at some points, that is what Chloe will do. You do not mess with Chloe Sullivan.

The somewhat confusing conversation between her and Bruce is very intended, because I don't think neither of them likes the feeling of dealing with something big, still unresolved, with many questions on the air and still out of their control. I hope you understood it as such and not as a failed incomprehensibly written scene.

Emil's status as a father is a completely invented fact, meaning that I did not take any time to research, so if in the comics he is indeed a parent, it is merely coincidental. In here I just used it as a means of leading that conversation with Lois and Clark to a logical end before any of the characters started rambling, thus making the dialogue repetitive and tedious.

Smallville!Lois' mother, as Lois herself revealed in her very first episode on the show, died of lung cancer when she was a child. Comic!Lois' mother did not. I'm sticking to strict Smallville canon here.

*****


	5. Chapter 4: Reveal Decide Need

_**CHAPTER 4 "Reveal; decide; need"**_

**DISCLAIMER: **not mine.

**NOTE: **originally this chapter was less than 2,000 words long, and the conversations Chloe/Clark and Bruce/Jim were in need of some rewrite, I think for the better. Enjoy.

*****

As promised, right after leaving Lois home, Clark flew to Gotham City, landing in front of the Wayne Manor's entrance, where Alfred told him that Bruce was out, somewhere in the city, and Chloe had left home for a very much needed rest. After politely denying the perennial bachelor a tea, trying to figure out how much of Alfred was strictly professional and how much was a pose for a very private source of fun through hero tease, Clark flew outside the manor and took his cell to call Chloe. He had decided that if she didn't take the phone after three ringing tones, he would hang up and talk to her tomorrow. The phone didn't make it to the second tone.

"Clark, hey."

"Is it too late for you, Chloe? I can come by tomorrow, I--" he mumbled already regretting calling her surely exhausted friend this late.

"I wasn't sleeping, Clark, come," she said. "We should talk."

Chloe didn't have time to hang up the phone before seeing Clark hovering in front of her window. This late at night the only witnesses of such guest would probably just be the random cats on the street, so she calmly opened it to let her friend inside. "Well that was quick."

"I was in the neighborhood," he said. "You said you wanted to talk," he added a bit unsure if that 'we should talk' thing was good or bad. After all it was Chloe. And Chloe was Lois' family. 'we should talk' could mean a million things.

"Yeah, about my putative son. You know, Chris Sullivan-Kent," she deadpanned.

How did she--? "Bruce told you?," he asked, giving her a rueful smile hoping she wasn't mad.

Chloe rolled her eyes and motioned Clark to sit down while she brought her wheelchair to the living room. "Yes, he told me."

"Oh."

"We had a very interesting discussion about how to approach the case," said Chloe, now that a little time had passed, reassured by the fact that all that Bruce had told her about them being on the right path was starting to actually make sense. "And Bruce thought it would be a good idea to have me informed."

Clark watched her as she went to her room and returned pushing the wheelchair towards him. "Fully informed, that is," she added.

"Honestly, Chloe, I would've liked to tell you myself," he said apologetically. "It happened so fast...Ollie called us and we went to the Watchtower to see him, we were there and then we...and I just got back from there," clumsily added Clark.

Chloe was already sitting in her chair, taking the artificial leg off and emitting a relieved exhale accompanied by a gentle rub on the stump. "Ollie did an amazing job, but after a whole day, it feels like wearing high heels for too many hours," she nonchalantly said. "Don't worry, Clark, I wasn't accusing you of anything, I know where you were." Then she sat back, more comfortable now, and gave him one of her cocky smirks. "But now that your here..." she said inviting him to talk.

"Did Bruce tell you who he really is?"

"Zod's biological son. I am also told he's nothing like Daddy."

"He was just a kid when he first arrived. After a few days we decided to adopt him, so we talked to Bruce. Lois came up with the idea of saying that he was her cousin's son."

"Well," she said, "at least I didn't have the kid when I was underage, so it's not as if you pictured me as some kind of deadbeat mother." Clark's stare quickly reminded Chloe that her sarcasm didn't really work with him, instead she got a sheepish almost childish innocent look. So she decided to take the soft, honest, seriously devoid of sarcasm path. "How is he?," she finally asked.

Chloe saw a certain glow she had very rarely seen in Clark's face, and suddenly imagined him as a father. And all those years of absence. And of moments lost never to be recovered that suddenly threatened to come and hit her with full force.

"He's fine, he's awake," he said keeping that smile Chloe didn't know if he was aware of wearing at that moment. "Emil did some tests, but...it's too soon to tell."

"Has he told you anything that might help?," asked Chloe.

"Not really," he said. "He was seemingly out of it ever since Lex caught him." He paused before adding softly "Two years ago."

Chloe's eyes opened wide. "Two y--? God, Clark, I'm so sorry."

Again the Smallville smile. "What matters is that he's back and safe."

Clark Kent, ever the optimistic guy.

"How about you, did you find anything?," he asked her, remembering the main purpose of his visit. It was hard to be all but professional when you were with one of your best friends.

Chloe preferred to spare Clark all the details of her conversation with Bruce and decided to tell him only whatever could help them. "I have all my mental kryptonite data base working on this, Clark, and Bruce is already analyzing all the stuff they brought us while he tries to figure out who killed Barbara."

"And?"

"There was no trace of green K anywhere, Clark. Nothing matches with its molecular structure."

"And apparently not blue either," he said. "Ollie told me."

"There's always the possibility of kryptonite desaturation, Clark" Chloe remarked. "It's not as if Lex would leave us a trail of traditional kryptonite color-coding."

Clark looked at her, hint of hope in his eyes at the possibility that they were dealing, at least partly, with something they actually knew about. Chloe's answer quickly swept it away.

"But no, so far no trace of blue-k either. I'm sorry Clark," she said noticing Clark's reaction. She felt sorry to have dashed his hopes away, but it was not as if she had another option.

Clark, indeed, looked almost cast down. "I don't know what it is, Chloe, but whatever Lex did to him, seems like nothing I've ever experienced myself. The only thing we know so far is that he seems to have all his abilities intact except for his vulnerability."

"I know," she replied, "Emil sent me a cliff notes version. It looks like he lost the molecular density of his dermis, right?"

Clark nodded. "He said maybe it had to do with lack of exposure to the sun," he added softly, wanting to believe in a possibility that he knew was not right. "I know it does not explain why would he still have the rest, but..."

"But you wish the explanation could be as easy as that," finished Chloe. She momentarily regretted having taken the leg off without the crutches near, wanting to hug her friend hoping to give him a little reprieve. Nevertheless she quickly got over the stupid self-imposed limitation and used her arms to move the chair towards him, gently placing her hand on his knee and a kind smile on her face.

"We shouldn't rule anything out, Clark." Her friend looked back at her. "Lex is behind this, so we cannot dismiss anything until we're sure it's wrong." Clark smiled and squeezed her hand, finding a very much needed comfort. "Bruce and I reached the conclusion that whatever his ulterior plans were, Lex had some kind of leverage to mobilize top assassins into killing Barbara," she continued saying, "but all traces are misleading. Ever heard of Lady Shiva?"

Clark nodded. "Not a meta, but a lethal woman," he said. "Is she implicated?"

This time it was Chloe's turn to move her head up and down in confirmation. "Bruce is almost certain. And if you're familiar with her MO you'll know that she really doesn't have a MO."

"Whatever moved Shiva, even if she just did it for pleasure, was big enough to catch her attention, is that what you mean?," he asked referring to both Chloe and Bruce.

"Barbara was a highly coveted prey, Clark, but Shiva knew her identity. She could have attempted on her life before, and she never did. I know I'm not making a lot of sense right now, Clark, and believe me, I had the same blank expression you do now when Bruce was talking to me. But the only sure thing about this, is that this is big. Even bigger than trying to kill Superman."

True, it was confusing. All this meant that they seemed to have one killer identified but that didn't narrow their path, only stated clear that there was more behind. Clark thought. There was something familiar about this Shiva. Then he remembered.

"Chloe, this Shiva...I've heard Dinah mention her a few times," he said a little confused. "And not as a sworn enemy."

"Bruce didn't look too happy about placing her in the top three list, I guess it has to do with that, but don't tell Dinah, at least not yet, let us be completely sure."

"Ok," came the reply.

"I don't think it was just about you, Clark, even if all the evidences point to whatever it was it also implied killing you."

Clark sighed, still holding Chloe's hand. "After all it's Lex we're talking about. It was always about us, but it was always about something more."

Chloe looked one more time at him before sweeping away that warm smile from one single blow.

"We need Lois in."

The 'we should talk' part had been bad after all.

Clark froze. Then he meant to shake his head firmly. But before that could happen he though again, and cursed his rationality. He hated to admit it, at that moment he wanted to be light years away from admitting that, but Chloe was right. They really needed her help. And this time Lois would kill him if she found out he had hidden this from her. Now there were too many things to consider.

"Clark," said Chloe hoping for an answer. He looked at her, but couldn't form a word. A strange mixture of desperation and defeat flooded his eyes, but that was all he did. "Believe me when I tell you this hurts me as much as it hurts you." The gentle hand squeezed her again. At least he was in there, listening and reasoning. "But we don't have the luxury to dwell on it, Clark, we need Lois active on this story and in contact with us." The real meaning behind the 'being in contact' part made Clark finally react.

"Chloe, that means..."

Yeah. _That. _Rueful smile. "Talking to her again as Oracle is not something I'm really looking forward to doing, believe me. But I don't see any other option. I've established a good position with her," she said reassuringly, "I can feed her with more information to see where she takes us."

"Are you sure about this?," he softly asked.

"I'm trying to think that I am actually talking to her. Listening to her voice," she said followed by a feeble shrug that didn't really work on Clark.

"That's what I meant, Chlo. She talks back. Not knowing who you are."

It was bad enough that Chloe was here, hidden from Lois. By choice, but they all knew that not every choice made meant happiness. And that separation was killing her inside, he knew. The closer she was, the greater the pain. She wouldn't admit it, but Clark had known her long enough to see through her.

"Like I said, it's not as if I've got another choice."

_Yes, you have. We could end this and you could come back. I have to bring you back somehow._

"Chloe, you don't have to do this," said Clark. "You could give me whatever you want and I'll give it to her."

"I'd lose time, Clark."

"Chlo, it's me."

"Yeah, super-speed paperboy," half-joked Chloe. "I have a responsibility here," she added in a much serious tone.

Years of friendship made few words and body language enough to fully understand each other. "Standing on your own feet," he affirmed rather than ask. "Chloe, you don't have to prove anything, least of all--"

"I do," she firmly said. "To me. I'm wearing someone's mask now, Clark. Someone who was brilliant, someone who I knew, admired, respected and cared about." She paused. "Someone who trusted me. It is so big that I'm afraid I'll be drowned in it if I don't prove myself I can do it without losing my name in the process."

"I didn't know her legacy was that heavy," he honestly admitted.

"Clark, when I...when I left, I was a nascent Watchtower, and Barbara was already established as Oracle. And she did really big things." She looked at him. That expression, always showing overwhelming faith on her. It was something to be proud of, but it was also a big pressure on her shoulders. "Clark, you knew her, you asked her help on Lex. It may have turn out in a bad way, but you knew she was the one," she quickly added to make her point without raising Clark's source of present guilt.

"I would've asked you if things had been different," he very quietly spoke.

Chloe closed her eyes. She had already dodge one moment of grief over lost times, she didn't want to have this conversation turning into some kind of therapy, nor touching a topic that right now was off limits. "I guess we'll never know," she said, then turning back the conversation to the subject at hand before he could reply. "I need to do this, Clark. And don't worry," she added in a lighter tone, "I'll figure out a way of doing this as painless as I can." Clark was still slightly unconvinced. "I'll let you take her information whenever I'm up to my elbows with something else, ok?"

"As if I could make you change your opinion," he admitted.

Chloe decided to avoid any further ramble and get back to business. "So, if I get her focus right on Lex and far from Barbara's murder she'll dig out all the dirt she can, and having Chris with you, and knowing how protective she is, I can only guess she'll have an extra motivation to kick some serious butt."

Clark chuckled despite himself. "You're probably right."

"Just say the word, Clark, and I'll feed her with more information."

"You promise you'll keep her out of danger?," he asked with pleading eyes. _Specially now?_

"Clark, my cousin doesn't look for danger. It just finds her."

_Well... _

"This time I'm betting she'll be more careful, Chloe," he carefully added.

_Ok, here it goes. The next big revelation._

"Chris?," she guessed.

_Not quite._

Clark thought for a moment before making the decision of telling her. "And something else," he finally said, almost shyly.

A blond eyebrow made its way up. "Really?"

A very well known sheepish look stared back.

"We're going to explore the possibility of..."

Chloe waited for him to finish the sentence. Clark was struggling with whatever he wanted to say. She decided to help. "...of?"

_Ok, here goes nothing._

Cerulean eyes looked back at green in fierce innocence. Then, he said it.

"Of having a baby."

For the first time since he knew her, Clark left Chloe Sullivan completely mute.

***

After the talk with Chloe, Bruce had needed badly to go out into Gotham. He knew he was right about everything they had talked, but that didn't mean he was ok with it.

Because he was not. And he needed to know he was in the right path, that no matter how rough this was getting, he was doing things right. He needed reassurance, and there was only one person who could give him that right now. The person now standing in front of him.

"Jim."

Commissioner James Gordon had received his message and went up to the roof of the police Station, finding Batman already there.

"You said in your message there were some advances?"

"We found one of the labs we were looking for," replied Bruce. "Probably one of the facilities Barbara managed to monitor."

"You said that she had left encrypted data," said Gordon. "Have you been able to read it yet?"

Bruce shook his head. And that particular fact was one of the things bothering Chloe the most, he suspected. Not because of an ego problem, but because they all had the feeling that those bytes carried essential information. "Your daughter was above brilliant," he simply said.

Gordon let out a bittersweet chuckle.

"I found a new lead," continued Bruce without revealing all the new questions it also implied. "I'm working on a few names now, almost certain of one of them."

Gordon was silent.

"Jim, I--"

"Batman," said the older man, "I've known you for years now, I know how you work, I know, in a way, how you think. I know that saying the word 'almost', more than a month after my daughter's death must be eating you inside." Then he looked at him. "So don't sell me this as good news," he added in an almost sharpened tone that startled Bruce. "I have always been honest with you, Batman. I want the same from you." The man behind the cowl remained silent. "Anyone who reached Oracle, who killed Oracle, is someone whose power goes beyond many things we can imagine. I know you don't expect it to be easy. Don't think I do either. I know who my daughter was, Batman, don't forget that."

Yes. A magnificent woman, brilliant, courageous and with a striking acceptance of all her flaws, making her even more amazing. Her father's daughter.

"I am aware this must be difficult for you too, Batman," he insisted in a softer tone. But I still prefer your bluntness over ailing arguments.

Bruce abided. "It's too soon to say names, and...the new Oracle," he uneasily added, "is also working on that set of information Barbara left us. Given all the evidences and general lack of information, I'd say we're dealing with something very serious. Specially knowing Lex Luthor's name is behind it."

"That doesn't sound good," reckoned the Commissioner.

"No," confirmed Bruce. "But there are lot of people very familiar with his methods working with me."

"He's very much in the public eye at the moment, Batman, don't you think he has covered his tracks flawlessly?"

"I'm counting on finding a glitch."

"On the identities of the ones who," God, it still burned to say it, "killed Barbara?"

Bruce shook his head. "Unfortunately I am not too sure of that. Not if the first name I'm seriously considering happens to be one of them," said Bruce. "I don't know how much longer it will take, Jim. But we will get to the bottom of this." And then he intently added, "And it will be done your way."

Bruce knew how much those words meant to James Gordon. Those words had been spoken on that fateful night. The night he would've killed The Joker, crossing the line, if Jim hadn't stopped him with those words. Those words had never left him ever since. They had been Bruce's compass whenever he felt lost.

"Thank you, Batman."

Three simple words. Bruce didn't need anything else. He bowed his head and left, now more determined, if possible, to get to the bottom of this, whatever the cost.

***

Clark entered silently, figuring that Lois would be asleep. He would talk to her, but not tonight. She deserved the rest. It had surely been an eventful night, to put it mildly, and they didn't have that long before sunrise. Clark didn't need the same amount of rest that humans did, but he surely thanked the relaxing feeling rendered by the warm water falling on his skin as he took a shower before sliding next to Lois under their sheets. She looked peaceful. He fell in love with her all over again. Softly, he let his chest rest by her back and moved an arm over to let himself drift into sleep as near as Lois as he could.

"It was nice of you to take a shower, sweetie," a voice came mumbling half awake, half asleep.

"Did I wake you?," he asked.

"Nope."

Lois turned, letting Clark's arm remain on her body, and faced him, caressing his cheek while letting a smile curve her lips.

"I thought you were asleep," he said.

"I wanted to fall asleep with you by my side, Smallville."

And all over again.

"I was hoping your visit to Gotham would be quick and the rest of the world was on a break. Everything fine?"

"Yes." He kissed her.

"Let's sleep then."

Complying, Clark let Lois happily turn back on her prior position and snuggle close to him as he held her, lost in her familiar scent.

"Smallville?"

"Mmmmm?"

"I love you."

"Love you too."

*****

**NOTES: **

I have stated it before a couple of times, even if I 'killed' her in order to bring Chloe: Barbara Gordon rocks. Hard. Chloe knows because Chloe is THAT AWESOME. Chloe will acknowledge everybody's virtues and will fight to shine on her own earned right amongst all that brilliancy and superpowered environment she lives in. She knows she's not just 'the new Oracle', but she needs to prove herself. Despite proclaiming myself an absolute fan of Babs, Chloe is a kicking ass stand-alone character, but in a universe where Oracle existed before SV's Watchtower, it's inevitable to write about her dealing with her new position and becoming this new covert strategist without losing herself in the process. I hope everyone sees it as that and does not feel she's merely feeling in someone else's shoes.

Barbara Gordon has –DCU's Birds of Prey– revealed her alter egos (Batgirl and Oracle) to her father.

"_A magnificent woman, brilliant, courageous and with a striking acceptance of all her flaws, making her even more amazing. Her father's daughter_" -- Barbara Gordon is always considered as his real daughter; even though Jim adopted her after her parents died...in reality he's her uncle; but you easily forget about it reading comics, because she always refers to him as 'Dad', and he always talks to her as his daughter, so the same goes here.

"_Bruce knew how much those words meant to James Gordon. Those words had been spoken on that fateful night_ "--Once more a reference to '_The Killing Joke_', from the night Barbara Gordon is shot.

**MUSIC INFO: **I wanted a fluffy cute song for Clark's and Lois' tiny fluff. **Jem '**_**Flying high**_**'**.


	6. Chapter 5: Mid Morning Surprises

**Chapter ****5 "Mid Morning Suprises"**

**DISCLAIMER: **still not mine, and it's not going to change.

**NOTES: **everything happening so far at _**Inside**_ has been through the night of 7/14. Moving onto 7/15, midmorning (except for Chloe's little flashback).

*****

_You don't really know the moment in which your body turns from asleep to awake. You simply __start being aware of your surroundings in a very peaceful way. At least when you're not subjected to the alarm clock's tyranny. These days that's what I do. I let myself rest awake, quietly, for a few minutes before I get up. It's practically the sole moment of the day where I get to feel some calm. And I need it, even if for just a few minutes. Today I even let a stupid smile make its way to my face while I remember yesterday's conversation._

*

"A baby? A...a baby, baby?"

Clark nodded, amused by the sight of Chloe Sullivan babbling clumsily. "Well, we don't know if..."

If she had been standing, she would've let herself drop back on her chair. "Whoa..."

"That's kinda how I felt too," he admitted smiling sheepishly. "Like whoa."

_Like I can't believe this is happening. Like I'm about to pass out from happy. Like I'm not sure of how much more in love can someone be._

"Well, I cannot say I'm not surprised," she admitted. "Of Lois deciding to try something that..."

"Incredibly bold?," he suggested.

Chloe pondered. No. Not bold. "I don't really think there's a word for that, actually. You're pretty much beyond our language's boundaries. Both of you."

"Well," he said a little more serious now. "It doesn't mean we'll make it. But we'll surely give it a try."

Chloe smirked. "You know, when Lo puts her mind on something..."

"Yeah."

A pensive silent pause.

And then she had finished the conversation the same way it had started.

"A baby. Whoa."

*

Chloe let her brain entertain itself with that memory while she looked at the clock on the nightstand. It was mid-morning. Ever since she'd started working as Oracle, her habits had been forced into her old Watchtower's work schedule, essentially chaotic, but now that she was working with Batman side by side, night shift was almost mandatory. The not so bright side was that the rest of the world followed another routine, and that meant that she could get people pulling the doorbell when she was still in bed.

_Ok, time to get up._

"Coming...," she lazily said as she got out of her bed. Maybe it was Clark, who wanted to tell her that Lois was already waiting for her to start working. Chloe braced herself for that one. Not something she was eagerly waiting to happen, not when all she wanted involving herself and her cousin was a very different scenario. Taking her clutches, she went to the door and peeked to see who was there.

Tall, dark and handsome.

But not Clark Kent. A very unexpected one indeed.

Suppressing the sudden jolt, Chloe composed herself and opened the door, trying to look as calm as she could. Maybe it was a coincidence?

_Yeah, sure. And they call you intelligent. Get a grip, Sullivan._

Chloe looked at him in silence. This was the second time in a row that she was left bereft of speech in a few hours span. She didn't like the feeling, but what could you honestly say to the one man who you really didn't want to know who you were?

Dick Grayson was not supposed to be standing by her door.

All her nerves, however, turned into a funny feeling of amusement at Dick's utterly sheepish and apologetic look, a very Clark Kent look, she had to admit. Chloe mentally shrugged. Maybe it came with the baby blues and not with the alien status after all.

Dick looked as dumbfounded as her, as if he was still dealing with whatever reason that had brought him here, so Chloe, taking advance of her still sleepy state, decided to be the confident one starting the conversation in the only possible way she found.

"Hi."

And it really had its effect, because Dick came back to his mission in less than a second.

"I'm...I'm sorry to...well," he mumbled.

"How...?," asked Chloe following perfectly the weird conversation despite the absence of speech.

"Bruce," he simply said.

_Bruce. Of course. _

"I know this is awkward, Miss Sullivan, but, you're standing here on one leg and, it looks awfully uncomfortable."

"I have clutches," she simply said. "But yeah, do come in," she offered stepping aside and opening her door wide so he could enter. "You standing babbling on my doorway definitely looks odd, and I don't suppose you came her to interchange weather remarks," finished Chloe deciding that she'd act as boldly as she could until she was convinced otherwise. "Please, sit," she offered guiding Dick to the sofa.

"Thanks," he said politely.

"I was going to make myself some coffee, would you like some?"

"No, thank you, Miss Sullivan."

Chloe went to her bedroom, in a reflex act, to get the wheelchair. Then she realized who was the man sitting in the living room, patiently waiting for her to do whatever she had to do and stoically subjecting himself to her sudden feistiness. She placed the prosthetic leg on its place and she mentally slapped herself for being so very close to a jerk. He might be the last person she was expecting to see at home, but he was also the last person to deserve such attitude coming from her.

Determined to fix her mistake, she went directly to the living room and sat in front of him.

"I thought you were going to make yourself some coffee," said Dick.

And Chloe gave him what she knew he deserved, a tiny warm smile, the kind of smile Chloe knew she yielded to perfection. "It can wait."

Dick understood and smiled in return, thankful that however the explanations he was bound to give, at least it seemed to go easier than a minute before.

"Again, I'm really sorry that I appeared in here."

"Well, I can't say I was expecting you at all, Mr. Grayson."

It was more than weird, Chloe suddenly reflected. As Watchtower first, and as Oracle now, she knew the secret identities of almost all members of the JLA, including subsidiary members. Ollie understood it was necessary. Barbara had figured them out alone. Chloe had been luckier. She had known many of them through their civilian identities, some from the incredible years of living in Smallville, and the founding members from her first years as Watchtower. But only a few, even if the number was growing, knew her. In the end almost all heroes had known Barbara as Oracle, Chloe thought. But right now, her situation was very different. She was supposed to be death, and that didn't mean just hiding from Lois. It meant Vic and Bart, among others. Dick was a special case, he had been involved with Barbara. He had been Barbara's love and sweetheart. Barbara, the original Oracle. Barbara dead. Chloe, the new Oracle. She simply did the math and thought of keeping Dick from knowing as the most natural thing to do. So yes, she truly wasn't expecting this when she awoke this morning.

"I don't mean to sound rude," she said, "but why would Bruce tell you my name? I didn't give him permission to."

"I insisted," he simply said.

_He insisted? _

Chloe was caught unaware. The last thing she would expect from Dick Grayson would be Dick Grayson wanting to meet the woman supplanting the love of his life's alter ego. Even if the key word was 'alter'.

"May I know why?," she finally asked.

"You're working with Bruce on Babs...on Barbara's case," he said, correcting himself for whatever reasons. "I want to be an active part of that mission," he quietly added. "The only way of getting to do that was being in the same room as you. So I had to know who you were."

_Do the math again, Chlo. This guy has all the rights to know your identity. He was not the one erring here_. And the fact that Bruce had abided only proved it further.

"I guess that qualifies as a pretty good reason," she humbly admitted.

"I'm really sorry I made it behind you, Miss Sullivan, but--"

"I understand. Hell, I'd be a glacier if I didn't," she said rolling her eyes, fishing for a smile to end with any cold formality. He happily took the bait, probably as uncomfortable as her with the situation. "But I'd be more comfortable if you called me Chloe. Miss Sullivan is a little unnerving," she added. "Bruce calls me that when he's pissed off at something."

Dick chuckled. "I can go with Chloe as long as you can go with Dick." They both shared a kind smile. Then he got up. "I should leave now, and let you have your coffee."

"Yeah," said Chloe smiling and walking him to the door. "Still getting used to Bruce's work schedule."

**"**Takes time."

Chloe opened the door. Dick turned and extended his open hand. "Thank you, Chloe."

Chloe took his hand with both hers. He didn't need to thank her for anything.

***

Clark had left early in the morning to do some supermaning somewhere in Europe, but would be around to take her to see Chris for their lunch break. Honestly, it didn't feel like enough to her, but it was not as if they could suddenly and openly say that they were going to visit their long lost foster son, recently rescued from a lab. Before going public with anything, they had to be sure that Lex wouldn't be able to put his claws on him again, and they would also have to sort out how were they going to explain his return. No, they couldn't go public with that yet.

Or with the baby.

Before Clark had come back from his visit to Gotham Lois had been thinking about it while she waited for him. She knew this was a long shot; literally uncharted territory. Of course they could make up a story of fertility problems. Almost every freaking couple she knew, her sister aside, had that kind of problem. And it was not as if she ignored the fact that people indeed talked or had talked about them at some point. Either they thought they couldn't have babies, or they thought that she, oh what a soulless bitch, did not want to have children. Dirty gossips that, if you thought about them, were or had been true for a while. Lois had never imagined herself as a mother when she was a kid, nor when she was a teenager. And if she ever did, must have been for a very short time, because she didn't remember. But the instinct, or whatever a woman needed to feel that necessity, had been there, because a young boy had awoken it in just a few days, and so hard that she hadn't seen it coming. The loss of Chris had buried it again under a pile of 'a very complicated and baby unfriendly life' excuses. As for the fertility problems...well, weren't they real... Lois had surprised herself thinking that even if through lies about the true nature of the issue, she could maybe talk to someone about it, share it; but, knowing herself, she'd better talk to a wall, because she was nowhere near wanting to give any further explanations or subject herself to continuous asking. And, trying to be realistic, the possibility that there was no chance that they could conceive was, well. Humongous, to say the list. So yes, her first reaction of telling Clark to keep it low profile remained. Not a word until it was true or completely necessary for whatever medical reasons Emil came up with. But what she wasn't about to leave aside, no matter what, was her hope and the very comfortable excitement she was feeling inside.

Then she looked at her watch. On time for her scheduled appointment with Perry. _It's good to know that whatever chaos my life is in, I still keep it together. Mostly._

"Morning, chief."

"Your husband forgot his wallet today and went to pick it up walking?," he asked when he saw her coming in alone.

"He's not my husband, chief."

"You call me chief, I call him husband, Lane." Lois rolled her eyes.

"Fine, _chief_."

"I got the résumé on the photographer," said the editor thankfully asking no further questions about Clark.

Lois felt a twitch of nerves in the pit of her stomach. She was grateful for the change of topic, but wasn't sure she wanted to face the new one. "Yes."

"James Bartholomew Olsen," said Perry reading the sheet of paper. "Looks as good as anybody. I'll have him called later," he informed her.

"Ok," she managed to say through her throat's lump.

Perry frowned in a bit of confusion and looked at her. "Anything wrong?"

_Better tell him the truth, Lane. _"I wanted you to know that I...I kind of know who this photographer is, and that's why I chose him," she said. "And I am aware it sounds completely out of line and that it discriminates the rest, but--"

Perry cut her. Serious, yet not angry. "You're right, Lane. That is out of line, and that is completely unlikely of you." He paused. "So I figure the reason of choosing him goes beyond being familiar with the kid?"

Lois nodded. "No, it's not," she admitted. "Or rather," she corrected, "it is literally being familiar. As in having been family for a while."

_Even if I never met him._

Perry remained silent, digesting her words. "Better give me a proper explanation, Lane, or I'll put the résumé back in the bin with the others and pick up one myself," he added, this time more serious.

Lois was not comfortable with the decision at all. Hell, it had been completely unfair from Perry to ask her that. But once she was placed there and saw that name she couldn't shake off the feeling that it was more than mere coincidence, and that...and that it all sucked. So she simply said the truth and let Perry take the final decision. "He had an older brother. Jimm-- Henry James. He was murdered. He was my cousin Chloe's husband." _There. You have it. Now you choose._

Perry stared silently at Lois. Then he softened his tone. "Did I ever tell you I met your cousin?," he said.

"Yes."

"She was a bright kid, with a bright smile," remembered Perry fondly and with a hint of sadness.

Lois beamed at the thought of Chloe. Everybody remembered Chloe's smile. "I know it's completely unorthodox," she quietly admitted, "but as much as I don't like the idea of having Jimmy's little brother in the city where he died, I can only guess he must have a good reason to come here. And probably the rest of photographers do too," she started babbling, "because, who wouldn't want to work at the Planet, but--"

"It's fine Lane," cut Perry.

"Fine?," she asked reflexively.

"Having you making the decision wasn't the standard procedure either, I'll admit," he said. "I'll have him called."

Lois looked back at him, not really knowing if thanking him or snapping at him for not annulling her completely biased judgment and moving on to another candidate.

"I hope you have clear in mind that this boy is mostly gonna be working in City, so even if you accept that job offer you haven't given an answer about," he reminded her, "you'll get to see his freckles very often."

_Oh. The job. Had almost forgotten about it, go figure_. "About the job...," said Lois. "I don't think you'll have a problem getting it real, Perry. Even if you don't have your ace reporter in it."

"Glad to see your ego's on check, Lane," he deadpanned. "Is this your final answer?"

"No," she promptly said, "not if I still have time to think it through." But it was true. With Chris back, the baby quest and Lex, she hardly contemplated the possibility of that job. And she hadn't talked to Clark about it. It was official: they had just broken a new record on busy lives.

***

Yesterday had been a long night, and Ollie didn't take the lack of sleep as good as he used to. He and Dinah had left the Watchtower really late, because among other things, he had wanted to read Chloe's update. Her reports were diligently sent every night, right after she finished her day-- rather night-work. Dinah, always the voice of reason, had told him to talk her out of working until so late and to convince her to take a more flexible schedule until Barbara's case was over, because so far she was refusing to delegate. Ah, delegating: one of the toughest things for leaders to learn. He knew all about it.

But Dinah was right. Chloe was pushing herself too much, and he knew her well enough to know that she would not ask for League downtime. Being head of the League, there came times when he had to make choices. This one implied a close friend and the League's interest, so it was more conflicting than others. Nevertheless, Lex Luthor could be labeled as a League's enemy, even if he was not declared nemesis of the whole organization. The problem was that they already had one key member out, and he had made Oracle full time member, so changing her status indefinitely would mean two League members out. And a substitute on system support if needed be. Vic was going to kill him.

Dinah had gone to the Watchtower earlier in the morning. As Lois and Clark couldn't go until their lunch break, she'd offer to keep Chris some company, so Ollie took that time alone to do some work, and when he thought it was late enough, he phoned Chloe.

"Morning, Ollie," she said.

"Hey, Chlo. I hope it's not too early for you."

"Believe it or not," she said, "you're not the first hero to visit or call today."

"Clark not respecting visiting hours?"

"No. I just widened my hero body of security," she responded.

"What?"

"Tall, dark and widowed," came the short reply.

By Ollie's silence, Chloe imagined his dumbfounded face, so she didn't wait for the exclamation and explained herself. "Bruce told him, but it's ok, I'll explain later. Did you receive my report yesterday?"

"I did," he said. "I also wanted to talk to you about that, Chloe. I think you need a rest."

"Right now I don't really think it's the best time, Ollie," she replied.

"I'm talking about the League," he insisted. "Take a break from all things unrelated to this. I'm assigning Vic until further notice."

"Ollie, if you start giving active members vacation to take care of personal business and burden others--"

"You know that kind of free time is almost a rule in our line of work. And we are a team for a reason."

"Yeah, but Batman and Oracle at the same time?," she tried to reason.

"Oracle has been an official associate of Batman for much longer than a fulltime League member. Leaguers don't ask questions, Chloe, this kind of stuff is normal. If Oracle and Batman decide to step out temporarily the rest know it's not to be taken lightly. And you know your current work is ultimately going to return to the League."

"Yes, but--" she protested.

Ollie knew her all too well. "It wasn't a request, Chloe. As your direct boss, I am assigning you permanently to one single mission." He paused. "As your friend, I'm begging you to at least consider taking the afternoons free. And I don't really need those updates every day, you know? I might not be all blind faith with the Bat, but I surely trust you know what you're doing."

"I see your good aim goes beyond archery," she admitted, thankful for Ollie's open and honest trust. Over the years he had been her best ally, always a step ahead of the rest when understanding her actions and choices.

"You know how much I care for you," he honestly responded.

"Well," she admitted, "it's not as if I can just go and ignore my boss' direct orders."

They both knew that was a lie.

"I'll take that as a yes," said Ollie smiling. "And I'll leave my other bugging subject for now."

"Which is?," she asked, taking the bait.

"You. Getting a life."

Chloe remained silent for a second. "Can I quote your lovely wife for this one?"

"You won't if I say no?"

"No."

He rolled his eyes. "Then by all means."

"Don't. Even. Think. About it," she said. "Oracle out."

She hung up the phone.

"I bet she loves using that line. Specially on me."

Then his cell rang and Ollie took it without checking the ID.

"Hello?"

"With all the mocking I forgot the big news," said Chloe.

"There were big news and you forgot about them? See my point now?"

"yeah, yeah, taking a break, oh genius, don't worry. Now, can I tell you?," asked Chloe.

"Already waiting," he said.

"Lois is going to be in."

"You finally got Clark convinced?"

"You doubted I could?," she answered smugly, making him chuckle. "Nah, it was rather a mutual thing. I think he finally convinced himself. And having Chris back sped things up."

"That's great, Chloe," he said. But he also knew the not so good consequence for her. "I know how you must feel about all this, so--"

"Save it, Ollie, we know it," she kindly said. "And we know it's necessary. But, will you do me a favor?"

"Of course, just ask."

"Clark told me something...it's rather personal, but I'm sure you'll know soon enough. Will you keep an extra eye on her?," she quietly added.

"Is there anything I should be aware of?," he asked, sensing Chloe's natural concern about her cousin went beyond the natural born reasons.

"It's something Clark told me. It's nothing to worry about, really, just...like I said, Clark will tell you. It just turned me overprotective, I guess," she admitted.

"More overprotective you mean?," he asked. As if faking her death was not protective enough.

"Ollie..."

"I'll say one thing. No one can deny you two are family, Sullivan." He heard the soft chuckle at the other end of the line. "Bye, Chloe."

He hung up the phone and got ready to leave for the Watchtower, replaying their conversation in his mind.

If Lois only knew how much Chloe cared for her.

***

Emil Hamilton had gone to the Watchtower early in the morning. He had left everything concerning Chris there, at least until he felt taking some material back to his lab in Metropolis was secure enough. Chris had spent the night peacefully, and he seemed to be doing just fine. No changes. Dinah had come in early and was showing him all the places where he had clearance. Only Wonder Woman, Dinah and Ollie were cleared to know of Chris' presence.

Then he saw his face reflected on his monitor.

"I guessed you'd come to visit soon."

"I don't have much time, just came in to know if you had something new," said Superman.

"Not yet." Emil turned to talk to him. "But I haven't found anything life threatening either. His apparent good health is real, Clark. And his powers are no fake. But neither is his changed dermis," he said, visibly bothered by not having any answers yet.

"You took blood and tissue samples, right?"

"And so far the blood looks kryptonian, but--"

"The skin doesn't."

Emil shook his head. "No, it doesn't. It just looks, for a lack of a better word, human."

Human. Something had turned Chris' skin 'human' and it wasn't blue kryptonite?

"Batman and Oracle still haven't figured out yet what was inside the pod, I'm guessing the answer lies there," said Clark.

"There are still more tests that I can perform on Chris, Clark, to figure out if the molecular change has only affected his skin or it has gone further. I still haven't made a scan."

"I already did myself," admitted Clark.

"Oh."

"I used my x-ray vision. I didn't see anything out of the ordinary. I'm sorry, I should've told you sooner."

"It's good to know that," said Emil. "I'll work with what I have now, and then, if his condition doesn't evolve and more tissue samples are needed, we'll take them." Clark nodded agreeing. "I'm also developing a solar radiating system, so I can subject him to it. Chris has been out of solar radiation ever since he went back to the Phantom Zone. The way he's still keeping his powers despite this makes me think your body probably works as some kind of very powerful battery; you seem to lose the properties like organic tissue loses carbon, at a very slow rate unless you're affected by another radiation, in this case kryptonite," he explained. "But the same way kryptonite works, I figured a high concentration of solar radiation would work too. And I'm aware of the risks of getting Chris outside now."

"Thanks, Emil, I really don't know how to--"

"I think you do enough everyday for all of us, Superman," he blatantly but honestly said.

"Nevertheless," Clark responded with equal honesty, "thank you."

Emil went back to work, thinking that the conversation was over, but Superman hadn't left. He turned again. It wasn't really Superman standing there. Despite the costume, the man before him was a very human Clark Kent. The side of him he hadn't seen as much as others, but that he knew nonetheless.

"I actually came to ask you something else," he said. "It involves you having certain extra spare time."

"Of course."

"It's rather personal," he shyly added.

"Personal?," Emil asked.

"I... Lois and I need your help."

*****

**Notes: **despite her complete and unquestionable faith in Clark and the huge friendship and love they feel for each other, I do think that in the hero level, Ollie and Chloe see eye to eye in more occasions than Chloe/Clark (even clearer in the present ninth season) and Ollie/Clark.

Everyone knows that getting Chris out of the Watchtower right now is a risk. When Lex is involved, you don't take any chances. Bringing him to Metropolis is out of the question for many different reasons, and anything out of Metropolis involves hindering Chris from seeing Lois and vice versa. Maybe this has not been entirely elaborated through the fic, but if so, it's because I took it as something logical. Getting Chris out of the Watchtower is dangerous, so he stays there. The only place where Chris gets to see Lois is the Watchtower, so he stays there. Nevertheless, the poor boy deserves a rest, because having so much movement restraint must be a pain. Chapter 7 will deal with that.


	7. Chapter 6: The Clueless Roads

**CHAPTER 6 "The Clueless Roads"**

**DISCLAIMER: **As if we didn't know already: not mine.

*****

His eyes opened wide in astonishment. "She confronted you?"

Chris was sitting on his bed, with Dinah on a chair, in front of him, and with her legs extended and resting, ankle over ankle, on the mattress.

"Oh yes," she said, chortling at the memory. "And that wasn't the first time."

"Wow," said the boy in the same awed manner while resting his back on the wall.

"That's Lois, Chris."

"I knew she was cool, but...wow."

Lois had a preternatural ability of getting people stuck in single-worded exclamations. Dinah knew that.

"One day I might tell you how we met."

"Really? When?," asked Chris, now anxious to know about yet another story concerning his mother's awesomeness.

"When I'm safely sure that you really like me," said Dinah remembering a certain knocking out punch into a certain reporter's head.

Before Chris could bomb Dinah with another batch of questions, the door opened, letting in a very welcomed presence.

"Hey, you two."

"Dad!" Chris' mouth widened into a huge grin when he saw Clark standing there, and flew over Dinah's legs to his side, engulfing him in a big hug.

"It's good to see you up, Chris," said Clark, letting his arms embrace the boy. Then he turned to Dinah. "Thanks for coming, Dinah."

"She's been telling me lots of cool stories about Mom," said a cheerful Chris, making Clark raise an eyebrow, very aware of all the stories Dinah could tell him.

"We're full of those, aren't we?" he said looking at her.

"You bet we are," she remarked.

"Is Mom here?," asked Chris.

"Mom will come later, son, I had to come to see Emil."

"Oh," said Chris changing his tone a little. "Something I should know?," he softly asked.

Clark gave him a reassuring smile. "No, son, you seem to be ok," he said with the sensation of being partly lying to him, because they weren't truly sure of how fine he really was. "No, I came to talk to him about something else, don't worry," he quickly said dismissing the conversation, knowing that the casual reference hadn't gone unseen by Dinah. "Lois and I will come by later this afternoon."

"Great," smiled Chris.

"So," said Clark, "despite what Emil told me, you're feeling alright?"

Chris rolled his eyes. "I told you Dad, I'm ok. I have all my powers and I don't feel any different. Will you stop worrying?"

"Not really, no," he deadpanned.

"Now you sound like Mom," he half-protested, half-joked.

"Well, you know what they say about people sharing the same bed, Chris," said suddenly Dinah.

Chris turned to her very curious, oblivious to Clark's alarmed look and slight blush. Obviously Chris wasn't familiar with Dinah's blunt and PG-rated comments.

"They become the same," she said rolling her eyes at Clark's reaction. "C'mon, Superman, as if I wasn't aware of the minor's presence in the room."

"What did she mean by that?," asked a clueless Chris.

"Remember what Lois said about meeting Bruce that first time?"

"About me not getting to know him until I was sixteen?," he innocently asked.

"Yeah," said Clark looking at Dinah. "I should've put Dinah on that same list."

"Um...Dad."

"Tell me."

"I'm already sixteen."

***

Lex always made it a point to keep all his projects permanently active. They were physically located all around the globe. If he wanted to have information on a project, experiment or facility, no matter the time zone, he wanted to have it immediately. He spent a very significant amount of money on staff to keep everything active 24/7, and he didn't expect anything less from them. Obviously certain projects dealt with specialized activities, hence needing very specific people in charge of them. Those people he kept near, and those people had a very detailed working schedule, so when Lex called for reports and debriefs, they were ready to give them to him.

Sitting on his office back from Smallville, he called his new chief of security.

"Yes, sir," said the man.

"Have you tracked the subject?," asked Lex.

"The implant lost its frequency, sir. It's like he dropped off the face of the Earth."

Might be exactly so, thought Lex.

"Keep trying," he ordered.

"Yes, sir."

Lex hung up the phone and sat back in silence for a moment. He didn't like, nor he accepted, defeat. He had convinced himself that the rescue of Chris by the Justice League was nothing but a minor setback, and as such, he could find a way to turn it in his favor. One more other thing that most people ignored about him was that he never let anything to chance. All possible scenarios were thoroughly studied in every single project. Chris had not been an exception, although, he had to admit, it had happened a little too soon. He knew he had Oracle to blame. Luckily that contingency had been eliminated. And his mind, like the river, always found its way to the ocean. The only dams he accepted were his own.

With new determination, Lex opened a channel and typed a message demanding reports on some serum he wanted ready as soon as possible. The reply took but a few seconds to come.

"Satisfactory. Results will be sent to you within the hour," sir.

"Develop it like the other one. Send me a report with qualities and dosage. I want the first batch to be sent to me immediately."

***

Lois was on her desk working on a short piece about Metropolis' latest initiative. Clark always kept with him a little book in which he scribbled notes and quotes. Mostly about hope. Being Superman was both incredibly rewarding and heart shattering. Always with the constant dilemma whenever a war exploded, always at a loss when he couldn't stop a terrorist attack, always trying to understand the incomprehensible: humans. His solace was found in other people's actions. Not all the world was rotten. Not at all, quite the contrary. Among all his notes and quotes, one of his favorites came from Howard Zinn. Ever since he read his book about the History of the States, he developed a huge respect for the late historian. The line written down on a now very worn page talked about how small acts carried out by millions of people turned into the greatest things. Clark was a firm believer of hope, and had brought hope to more people than he could ever count in his life, however long it was. Metropolis, as the official homeland of Superman, had been naturally touched, and ever since he appeared, it let itself be infected with it. Fundraisers as initiatives started by individuals, by cities or by states, were blissfully very consolidated amongst the North American society. Cancer research fundraisers were the most popular, and most involved people doing physical activities for donations. As one of the cities with the biggest concentration of high buildings and wide streets, Metropolis had set a two-day cancer fundraiser project. Three cancer research institutions had been selected as the receivers of the money raised. They led very promising projects on breast, lung and colon cancer. So Metropolis was hosting all events: walks, runs, marathons..., for two days. Metropolis, cancer fundraising central for hope. More than a hundred teams, they had beaten all predictions. It was going to be great. She'd make sure to send Jimmy's brother there. Right after she made sure he would not photograph her sweating her lungs out on the stair-climbing team City was inscribed in. Immersed on the story, as usual, Lois didn't see Clark coming until he was already sitting on his chair, looking back at her.

"Perry wonders about today's excuse," she said, smiling back.

"I sent him the piece on the strike plus a note on Superman's savings in Metropolis this morning. He's content now, don't worry." Then he paused for a second and added quietly. "We need a new keyboard."

Lois rolled her eyes. "You know we're running out of computer stores and excuses for that, right?"

"I was in a hurry," tried to explain Clark. "I knew Perry wanted to have it early."

"The money we spend monthly on peripherals is getting ridiculous, Smallville," she said half-joking. Ask Ollie, sweetie, maybe he can arrange something for you."

Clark chuckled. "I might do," he said, receiving a content smile from Lois.

"So, how was the morning?," she asked.

"Eventful," he simply said. There were too many things to talk with Lois, but the busy bullpen was not the best place. "I come from the tower," he added in a whisper. "He's fine. He got your wits," he said, receiving a quizzical look from Lois. "Do we have time for a rooftop talk?"

"In a minute, I want to finish this," she said. Lois was eager to know all about Chris and all about Clark's talk with Emil, so as soon as she finished the article, she would have her mind and time just for them.

"Tell me about your morning then?," offered Clark. Lois' morning was something they could talk about in there while she finished her work.

"I talked to Perry earlier," she said. "He's calling Jimmy's brother for the interview."

It wasn't hard for Clark to hint the inner conflict.

"I told him about who he really was," she continued, "and I got reminded of that job offer I still haven't discussed with you."

To be honest, Clark had forgotten about it. Not that it prevented him to have his own opinion about the matter very clear in his mind. "You know you have my support no matter what, Lois," he very sincerely said. "Whatever you decide will be fine as long as you're doing what you want."

"You're so very sweet, honey."

"I'm so very in love, I'd say, Miss Lane," he responded.

***

Lex smiled. Everything was not lost, after all. The reports he had demanded earlier had diligently been sent with all the information he needed. Having lost Chris before he had predicted the contingency to happen wouldn't make a dig dent on his plans. The engine working smoothly again. That was essential, because he had a political career to go back to, he couldn't afford to lose his popularity right now, and he knew that the public opinion would start making the right questions very soon if he didn't go back.

And there was another reason to be content at. He had received the first surveillance report on the new subject. This was going to be a very sweet revenge.

Everything else seemed under control. He obviously did not expect Lois Lane to be doing nothing, but he had tied her hands enough to keep her away from reaching people. Her writing hand could be as dangerous as Clark's powers. He reminded himself to keep an eye on her. Just in case.

***

"So he's ok? Really ok?," asked Lois.

Clark opened the door leading them to the rooftop. "All the results are so far positive, Lo, I think he's fine," he said in an attempt to ease things.

"Chris has been a lab rat for two years, Smallville. You have a very low concept of 'fine'."

Not that trying to ease things ever worked with Lois.

"I meant he was feeling fine, and there's no trace of disease or otherwise, at least from the first results Emil got."

"I guess I'm tense and nervous about that. The thought of Chris having been there...it irks me."

"Yes, me too," confessed Clark. They went to their spot and sat down, Lois gratefully taking the space Clark offered so he could place his protective and comforting arms around her. So both would be comforted by the other.

"But I'm also happy to have him back," she added, receiving a loving hug and a kiss on the back of her neck as a reply.

Clark had two very important things to talk to her. He pondered which one would be best spoken first, and opted for the one he really wanted to talk about with her. "I talked to Emil about us."

Lois went still for a moment. "What did he say?"

"Not much other than wanting to help. We have an appointment with him. Tomorrow. First thing in the morning."

"Wow, that was quick," she said.

"Was it wrong, were you--?," asked Clark a little concerned.

"I'm not having second thoughts, Smallville. I'm..." She struggled to find the words.

"I'm nervous too," said Clark finishing her thoughts for both and keeping her close to him. Then he let a moment pass and he moved on to the other pressing matter. "I also talked to Oracle," he said, feeling the instant reaction in her body, turning to face him. "They," he started saying, but then he corrected himself. "We want your help on this."

Lois stared at him in silent for a few seconds, an incredulous look adorning her face. "You're asking me now to work on Luthor to finally dig out all his dirt?"

"And you have all the reasons to be mad, I know."

"And you had all the reasons to keep me away, I know," she admitted despite herself.

"So, will you do it now?"

"On one condition."

"Which is..."

"I'm working directly with Oracle, you don't get to play intermediary."

Chloe had probably known this would be Lois' reaction, Clark reflected, thus convincing herself that she would have to talk to her. "That's...Lois...," he babbled.

"You know I'm already onto something, Clark, but if you Leaguers suddenly want me in because now it suits you, it'll be on my terms." Silence. "Deal?"

"I'll have Oracle contact you."

***

Chloe usually went to the Wayne Manor late in the afternoon. Many days, Bruce would be out playing the billionaire role, but he made sure that it only happened when it was completely unnecessary. She also knew Bruce didn't enjoy to play the part. He was so unlike Clark in that too. Clark had grown up surrounded in light, whilst Bruce had known darkness before anyone should.

Today Bruce had been most of the day inside the cave, determined to find out what product had been injected on Chris' body. And Chloe had sat on her chair resolved to advance in her works too. Neither considered it necessary to mention Dick. Chloe figured Bruce knew she'd understand, and he was obviously right. Bruce wasn't either a person who needed to be told how right he was, because... Well, he simply knew.

So both had been working in silence for a couple of hours. Bruce shook his head and almost grumbled. It didn't make sense, there was no trace of kryptonite. He had analyzed all the substances brought by Oliver and Dinah. They were all common chemicals. Chloe stood beside him, incredulous too at what she was seeing.

"We must be missing something, Bruce."

"I've run the tests twice on each sample. There is no kryptonite," he sentenced.

"Are you telling me that there is another substance in this Planet which affects kryptonian physiology and only Lex Luthor knows about it?" Just the sound of her own words made her shudder.

"I hope we're missing something, Chloe. I really hope so."

***

Lois entered home alone after having spent a very well deserved time with Chris. He was as happy as ever, and wishing to come back as soon as possible. Seeing him so apparently healthy made her want to believe that he really was ok, and forget all about Lex and bring the kid back with them. But they really had to figure out what was wrong with him. And they really had to catch Lex, once and for all. At least she had officially been given green light by the League, so she expected to have some sort of contact with Oracle soon. As if on cue, the the cell in her purse beeped. Lois took it to see who had sent her a message. The phone number was unknown, but the green mask appearing on the screen was more than familiar. Lois' lips curved in a triumphant smirk.

"This will be our contact line," said Lois reading the message aloud. "Cool, I get my own Red Phone." And shortly followed another message, in green letters, from the same number.

_Check your e-mail._

Lois went to their study and turned their computer on. Clark, quite the environmentalist, always left it off, and he had been the last one using it. Fortunately the computer was quick. Even to display the message stating that the net was inoperative. Unbelievable.

"Oh, for crying out loud, not know," complained Lois. She checked her watch, thankful that the technical service had a 24-hour availability. However, she wasn't about to wait for them to come, so she asked their neighbor Mrs. Watson if she could open the door for them, in case they came, she took her keys and went back to the Planet, sending Clark a message on her way out.

***

Right after sending Lois back home, Clark had gone directly to the Batcave, finding both Bruce and Chloe.

"Clark, I'm glad you came," said Chloe.

Bruce, however, looked not so happy to see him in his place, but knowing it was necessary, he merely put the cowl on, excused himself and left.

"I don't really know why they call him knight, you know? He's rather rude."

"Barbara's dead and he holds me partly responsible, Chloe. And still he knows he has to help. It's noble, but it must be sickening," replied Clark still looking in the direction Bruce had left.

"You're exaggerating, Clark," said Chloe from her chair.

"Chloe, if The Joker had suddenly found out about you and killed you because Bruce had asked you to investigate him--"

"That would've never happened," she said cutting him.

"You're right. That would've never happened because Bruce would've never asked you for help. He would've done it by himself."

Chloe rolled her eyes, very unwilling to go down that road for the umpteenth time. "Trying to discuss this with you is pointless, Clark. Just drop it and let's get to business."

Clark sat on the table by her side while Chloe started to work on some files. "You found something?," he asked."

"Rather we didn't find it." Chloe looked at him, now with a concerned look. "I don't know how to say this, Clark, but...we checked every sample brought by Ollie and Dinah. Twice. There's no trace of kryptonite."

Clark swallowed.

"Nothing?"

"No." Clark looked disheartened. "Look, Clark, it...it does have sense. I mean, Chris' symptoms are just the changes in his skin, right?," she said trying to find some logic in the pool of cluelessness they were stuck in. "Maybe it's just a reaction to long-term exposure to normal chemicals. Maybe after all it has to do with the lack of exposition to solar light. Just...just don't--"

Oh. Of course. She was worried. He had almost forgotten that: Chloe always looking out for him. "I won't Chloe," he said forcing the smile back again. "Promise."

"We'll keep looking, Clark," she resolutely said. "We'll find out what happened there and we'll get Lex."

Clark placed his hand on her shoulder. "I know we will."

They both found themselves wanting to remain inside that moment of mutual friendship that had defined their relationship from the beginning. Even if for a few seconds, before Chloe talked again. "Did Lois get my message?"

"She sent me a message. Internet crashed at home, so she went to the Planet to see what you had sent her."

"It's a brief report on our findings on the facilities we searched," she informed Clark. "Anything to get her from Barbara and onto Lex. I still don't want her anywhere near Gotham."

"She's not forgetting about Barbara that easily, Chloe," warned Clark.

"Yes, as if I didn't know my feisty cousin," she said rolling her eyes. "We both need our mutual help, but I'm in charge. I only have to let my cousin believe we're playing even."

"You think you can do that?"

"Actually, yes. I think I can."

Clark let himself chuckle. "The greatness runs in the family, uh?"

Chloe smirked and poked him on the arm. "Didn't you get lucky with us..."

***

Lois saved the files Oracle had sent on her drive. Now she had all the data known about Lex's labs. Surely some of them used as reserves. The bastard. Keeping his own oil reserves just in case the active ones became compromised. At least now she had tangible proof that Lex was carrying out probably illegal experiments. And she knew the subject. Now she had to connect the dots between her current research on Lex controlling pharmaceutics over United Nation's handling, altering alien physiology and killing Superman. She needed to know what had they done to Chris. And she needed to know what Oracle had on Lex.

She quickly typed an e-mail with her primary conclusions and sent it back to Oracle using the security directives she'd been given. Then she left home. She and Clark had a very important meeting first thing in the morning.

Lois awed. And it was a very welcome feeling. They were doing it. They were actually going to do it. Lois felt a bewildering array of sensations. It was overwhelming. But also exciting. After so many years with the question ignored but looming among them, they were confronting it.

A baby.

Wow.

***

Chris wandered around the small space he had been given to walk around inside the Watchtower. One of the rooms at least had a window. And the view was breathtaking. Chris smiled at the memories the infinity of space brought into him: Clark taking him flying.

He kept those memories inside like a treasure, precious gems he would never forget. Those memories had helped building up the foundations of what and who he wanted to be, and looking back through his mental screen, he smiled again. He had given up his freedom for them. He had done something worthy of a hero, of a hero like Clark.

A slight shade covered his eyes when he thought about the kidnapping. About those eighteen months he very vividly remembered before everything went black.

Less than four months ago.

*****

**NOTES: **Howard Zinn is a US historian, very recently deceased, that Clark loves reading. I'm not sure, but I've probably mentioned him before somewhere in _**Link**_. He really spoke about hope and about all the god things normal people could achieve. I can only think of him as a read that Superman would hold very close to him. Mr. Zinn passed away very recently, and I, like Clark, have a big respect for his words and works. The quote Lois mentions is this one: "_Small acts, when multiplied by millions of people, can transform the world_."

Fundraisers: I think those are a wonderful example of small acts achieving big things. I was recently told of the 2010 FIGHTING FOR AIR CLIMB, by the American Lung Association. I am not American, nor do I live there, but I know what it is to lose loved ones to cancer and how important is research. Feel free to go there and see what it is about, or to look for other little acts like that one wherever you live.

Everyone was concerned with Lois going to Gotham to investigate for two reasons: danger to her life is the obvious first one. And it's Lois, chances are she'll find out about Chloe when she's not supposed to. In her protectiveness towards her loved ones, Chloe is obviously just thinking about the first one.


	8. Chapter 7: Appointment Number One

**Chapter 7 "Appointment Number One"**

**DISCLAIMER: **Not mine.

*****

He chuckled. She heard him chuckle.

"You chuckled."

"I did," he confirmed.

"Smallville. You chuckled," she repeated.

And he chuckled. Again. "You made me, honey."

"Is that supposed to be charming?"

This time Clark prudently kept the laughing sound at bay. "You look...," Clark struggled to find the words. "...cute."

He obviously failed in finding the correct one. He only had to read in her eyes to know.

Lois studied him. They were sitting on Emil's office, waiting for him, like any couple visiting a doctor. Only they were not just any couple, Emil wasn't just any doctor and the reason behind their appointment was anything but normal. And all that Clark could come up with was chuckling and calling her cute? Lois Lane, cute? The sound itself was...was...come on, she wasn't cute. Was she?

"I'm sorry, hon," spoke Clark sensing Lois was nowhere near saying a thing. "I saw you nervous, and I guess I'm a little too, and..." he looked at her and spoke in a very honest tone, surprised too at his own words. "You do look...different somehow." Again the clueless face. "Maybe 'cute' wasn't the right word," he admitted. Then his tone changed into that one he used when he opened wide his soul to her. A tone she knew by heart for those many times he had used it. "But when we talk about this, the baby, and Chris," he said, "your face, everything in you changes."

Hazel eyes opened wide at his unexpected comment.

"I don't know how to explain it, Lois," said Clark taking her hand and focusing on it, maybe to find the words. "You are this amazing person, full of strength. And it seems the world only sees that side of yours. Like you have this shield that no one has the right to get through except those who you let." He kissed her knuckles, and received one in return. "And I am this incredibly fortunate man who gets to see the other side. And it's beautiful."

"You know, it would be a very common thing if you lived with that side of me all day, Smallville. The shield is pivotal in my master plan," she said acknowledging his honesty while trying to shrug off all the different emotions she was feeling.

To no avail. Clark's honesty was demolishing. "You have so many layers that I don't think I will ever stop peeling them, Lois, and I feel the luckiest man in the world for that." No, there was no point in trying to lighten the mood. Not until Clark felt he had said everything he needed to say. "I still don't know how, but I am the one you chose. And this layer..."

"What?," she asked.

"It's incredible, Lois." He breathed out the words with the strength of the softness of his voice. "It's a mixture of hope, excitement, protectiveness and...and vulnerability," he finally said.

Lois said nothing, her eyes fixed on the hand he held so lovingly, caressing it with his thumb.

"I know you don't like vulnerability, but--"

"But this specific one lets you feel we're on the same level here, right?"

Clark thanked whatever bond they had that made them both understand each other so profoundly. His thumb traveled its way up to her wrist, only to be stopped by a hard surfaced object. Lois still had her jacket on, and he hadn't noticed it.

It meant the world to her, because of what it symbolized. Because she had been the one, after all, that he had given it to. It seemed too precious for her, and she didn't want to lose it, so she had decided to leave it on her nightstand. Where she could feel it close to her whenever it wasn't on her wrist. Then she wore it on special occasions.

Lois was wearing the bracelet.

She noticed the change in the movement pattern of Clark's thumb when it collided with the bracelet and smiled.

One of those 'words unspoken' moments.

"I guess what I was trying to say is that I welcome the feeling of not being the only one nervous here," he said finally. That was a feeling he could share. The fear crouching and settling behind his eyes was a whole different thing, at least until he learned to deal with it. But the nerves about this, the part linked to that excitement, was something he was willing to share with her until the very end, whether it meant they would succeed or...or not. "You're nervous, right?," he carefully asked waiting for a confirmation.

Lois rolled her eyes and accepted the change of the tone, assuming naturally the lighter mood. "I'm about to discuss our sexual life with Emil-- scratch that. I'm about to discuss our sexual life with someone other than you. What do you think?," she asked raising an eyebrow.

Clark's lips curved upright. "Given the constant hammering of your fingers in my leg, I'd say your nerves have just ranked to a new high level."

"And your perkiness/fluff/perkiness attitude does not help to keep my emotions controlled. Just so you know."

"Emil will just probably want to talk about his approach," said Clark in a calming tone.

"Well, he better be direct and to the point," said Lois, now back to herself. Then she paused a few seconds while she looked around. "You understand how weird it feels to be in the former Isis foundation, right?"

"Lana donated the building to the Justice League," explained Clark. "When we moved to the Watchtower we decided to give the place to Emil so he could have his main lab here."

"After experiencing teleportation? Gee, I wonder why he'd rather stay earthbound."

"You get used to it."

"Says the man defying the laws of physics everyday. Clark, you would've given Newton a migraine. Really, Smallville. You do _not_ get used to it."

Shortly after, Emil walked in. "Clark, Lois, sorry to keep you waiting.

"Thanks for having us."

"It's the least I could do."

"So," said Lois.

"I cannot lie to you. As a doctor, by natural curiosity, my mind has thought about this before."

"About how could Clark procreate?," asked Lois a little surprised.

"From the medical point of view it is a fascinating challenge, you have to understand that."

"Don't tell me there are already papers written about that."

Emil chuckled. "No, don't worry. But I'm guessing I'm not the only scientist wondering about that. I just wanted to start with honesty."

"I can do honesty," said Lois.

_God, I would take honesty over anything, especially with this._

"So," began Clark, queuing the doctor to continue.

"I know of no way, but maybe a line to start with."

"We weren't expecting a miracle, Emil," said Lois squeezing Clark's hand. Clark returned it.

"By our own evolutionary standards," continued Emil, "you're classified as a different species, Clark. And different species cannot procreate, so theoretically we're parting from the fact that you cannot conceive a baby with a human female." Before Lois and Clark's hearts sunk into depression, Emil kept talking. "However, these theories are earthbound."

"Meaning?," asked Lois.

"There is no record of hybridization between humans and aliens, at least that we know of, but it doesn't mean that they are impossible, or that they do not exist."

Clark flinched a little, making Lois turn her head to look at him. If there was something going on inside his head, she wouldn't tell, but something told her that the sudden slight change wasn't casual at all.

"You're saying there might be a way?," asked Lois more hopeful making a mental note to ask Clark later.

"I think we should explore every possibility. If we can decode your equivalent of DNA and analyze the chromosomal structure of your gametes and produce--"

Lois stopped him. It was one thing letting him talk about them as some sort of lab rats. Not understanding a word was a whole different thing. "In English please."

"Of course, I'm sorry, Lois. What I'm trying to say is that my first aim should be to make your respective reproduction systems compatible. Sort of considering them as those from two different breeds, not distinct species."

"Swell," said Lois in a sarcastic tone. "I feel like a mare, Smallville," she whispered.

Emil continued in a more serious tone. "And at the same time I would focus on Lois' body."

This time Lois knew where Clark's stiffening came from.

"A half-kryptonian baby could pose..." Emil didn't want to say 'danger'; knowing Clark, the conversation would end there. Although knowing Lois..."We need to make sure your body can handle it," finished Emil. Before Clark could protest, he furthered his explanations going back to square one. "You come from another planet, Clark, and you don't have any biological records; we don't even know if your reproductive system works the same as ours."

"Oh, it does," said Lois suddenly with the same intention of keeping the conversation away from Clark's fears.

And she knew which was the best way to do that.

"At least the motivational mechanisms."

Lois Lane's trademark attitude.

Clark blushed and Emil tried to suppress his sudden need to snort to suppress his sudden need to burst out laughing.

"I mean, he really does function, but little Kal-els don't seem to know where to go from there. Which is really stupid, because the ride can't be that long, right? I assure you, doc. Superman's smaller brain is very aware of my physiology, and it works the same as any other human male I--no, scratch that. He's Superman, you know?"

"Lois!"

"What? If we want to find answers we might as well give Emil some shortcuts. If there's a chance of getting pregnant I'd like to do it while I still can, not when I'm innate 54 in Metropolis' Geriatric Center."

Emil thanked that, of all the women in the world, the one sitting in his office for this particular challenge, was Lois Lane. There was nothing but unanswered questions ahead, but she made it easier. "So, if we find a way to make your gametes compatible, we will be able to produce an egg."

"See, Clark? We have brought the concept of exogamy to a whole new level."

"It also might be helpful to have someone to talk about it," added the doctor.

"I don't think that's a good idea," sentenced Lois. She knew neither Emil nor Clark agreed with her, though the explanation she gave was meant for Clark. "Look, Smallville, I'm not going to be naive thinking Ollie does not know a thing of our plans," Clark looked down confirming her suspicions. "Yeah, right. But I'm me, and you can imagine I'm not going to discuss this while it's even far from being a real possibility." She paused. "I can't deal with the battery of questions attached to it." Another pause. "And I can understand your meaning, Emil, but I know myself, trust me. It's better this way."

Clark remained silent. Lois knew that there was at least one name in Clark's mind, one name they both knew she could talk to. She hoped he understood that of all the people in the world, Martha Kent was the one she didn't want to put feeble hopes inside only to take them away if this didn't work out.

Clark remained silent. He knew why Lois wouldn't talk to his mother. He knew why he wouldn't talk to his mother. Even knowing that she would support them, even if...no. That came out wrong. _Especially_ if it didn't work out. But another name lingered, gripping strongly in his mind.

Emil accepted Lois' explanation. After all, he knew her enough to know that when Lois said something like 'trust me, I know myself', she wasn't bluffing or exaggerating. She was just being plain honest. But once again, he thanked the fact that they were who they were. They were getting into an unexplored territory, one that could lead them to a very disheartening end. Still, knowing that one of the two people implied was Lois gave Emil some hope. If this didn't work out, Lois would handle it. If it did work out and they conceived, all the potential risks would be on a very strong woman.

"The first thing to do would be having samples. One of your eggs, Lois. Sperm," he said professionally. "Also some blood samples from you." He looked at Clark. Then at Lois. And he knew who he had to explain to.

"It's necessary, Lois," said Emil sensing the great discomfort in her.

"That doesn't mean I'm happy with it."

"Short exposure to kryptonite doesn't hurt that much, Lois. Even less when it's for this reason," said Clark reassuringly.

"Well, at least not all of the samples go out through a syringe, you get to do some manual work, Smallville."

It took a while for Emil to put himself back together and get back to work once they left.

***

If Clark could sweat from embarrassment, he would be a walking puddle right now.

"We still have half an hour, Clark. Breakfast at Robbins? I'm starving," said Lois casually.

"You're aware that you make me blush like nobody else in this universe, right?"

"Why? Because I was direct with Hamilton?"

Direct? that was an understatement. Clark rolled his eyes. "Not just direct, Lois."

"Look, I'm sorry, but it is important that we are honest with him."

"Yeah, but there are ways and ways, hon," he said in a pleading tone.

This time it was Lois' turn to roll her eyes. "Oh, come on, Smallville, he knows the early version of you, he knows us before we became an item." Then she showed him one of those infinite layers, the one in which Lois admitted. "But ok, my infamous defense mechanisms are something I have no control over."

"There is a list somewhere of all your defense mechanisms. It's really long."

"But I'm not happy about you getting exposed to kryptonite so they can take blood samples."

"It's the only way to start," he stated.

"Are you sure?," she suddenly said.

"Lois..."

"Because what you said about us being on the same level here is quite true. And back there, when Emil was rambling, he talked about hybrids. You flinched."

"I--"

"I didn't ask because I was trying to keep up with him, and I figured if you didn't tell him it was for a reason. I am not asking you, Clark, at least not yet, but if you know something, I expect you to tell me."

It wasn't an angry remark. Clark knew. And he returned her honesty with the same coin. "I did think of something when he talked," he admitted.

"But we're not talking about it now."

"I'm not sure about how to deal with it, nor how to approach it. I need a little time."

Lois silently respected the decision and they both went to have some breakfast.

Whatever came, the first step was already made.

***

Chris was in his room, idly passing the pages, reading those lines that had caught his eye. Dinah had brought him some books, and had promised to come back later for some workout in the gym. Two books. He didn't want to say he could have them read by the moment she stepped out of the door; it had been a very nice gesture of her. He knew it was for his own good, but staying there was making him frustrated, there was only so much he could do there. But it was also the best way of getting to see Lois as long as he had to remain hidden. Being in Gotham and flying to Metropolis every day was too conspicuous, to put it mildly. That's what Clark would say. Lois would probably shout 'are you out of your goddamn mind?' or something similar. Chris chuckled at the thought.

Then, the door to his room opened. It was too early to be Lois, but it was a woman standing there. And not just any woman. His eyes went directly to the glowing rope tied by her waist.

"Hello, Christopher. It's good to see you awake."

"Why are you here?," he asked sharply. He couldn't take his eyes from the lasso.

Diana was a bit taken aback by his question and tone. With the dim light she didn't see where Chris' gaze was focused on. "I'm sorry, Christopher. I came to--"

Chris cut her. "I'm sorry, I--that was completely out of line, Miss..."

Diana smiled at the sweet boy. "You can call me Diana. I asked Kal if it was all right to take you for a ride. Ever heard of my plane?"

Her plane? Her plane was like the coolest thing! Of course he had heard about it!

"You're not kidding?"

"I'm not particularly known for my sense of humor, Christopher," she stated.

He pondered for a second. "We'll we be back for the afternoon?"

Diana smiled, knowing the doubts bringing forth that question. "I wouldn't risk Lois' wrath for not having you back when she came."

It was Wonder Woman saying those words, and yet, he wasn't the least surprised about that. "Then let's go!"

***

"Mr. Luthor, if you keep your campaign on hold for longer your popularity will set back faster than you think. Whatever it is that stopped you, make up a story of your liking and feed the media with it. I'll arrange a press conference; it will make it more believable if you're seen."

"Fine. Proceed then," he calmly said.

Lex liked his chief of campaign. He was ruthless and to the point, and that's what he paid him for. Actually, the man liked money too much to question his present source of income. And he was right, he couldn't just sit back, he had achieved a lot and there was a lot at stake.

He hung up the phone and checked his messages; he was to receive several reports, both on his projects and on Chris.

***

Clark was finally able to fly to Gotham late that night, and went directly to Chloe's apartment.

"Hey, Clark," she greeted him.

These past weeks she had still been on the Batcave at that time, so having her at home worried Clark a little. "Is everything ok? Shouldn't you be sleeping? Chloe, you work too much, you--" he was silenced by her hand on his mouth.

"I don't really need a babysitter, thank you very much. I got some interesting information from Lo last night. She was really onto something."

"Was she?," he asked trying to sound casual and failing miserably.

"Surprised? This is Lois we're talking about."

"Not surprised," he admitted. "I just didn't know about it. I guess she's still a little mad at me for keeping her away for so long." After all, she had told him she would work directly with Oracle.

"Her capacity to hold grudges is world wide known, Clark, but this time I think she was also protecting you from doing something really stupid," Chloe replied honestly.

Lois protecting him. That wasn't new.

"What did she find?"

"You know," said Chloe in a certain tone he knew all to well. The one that scraped mockery. "She told me about her arrangement. I am not to talk to you about this, Superman."

"I can't believe this," he said shaking his head and smiling lightly.

"So you don't get to know anything until you're meant to know it, mister."

Clark abided. "But you didn't call just to let me know you're siding with Lois on this one, right?," he asked.

"No. I wanted to talk to you about something and didn't feel like talking there," she said referring to Batman's cave. "After yesterday's uncomfortable Bruce moment at the cave I thought about it," said Chloe in her serious tone. "I'm worried of him doing something against you, Clark."

"Chloe," replied Clark, "whatever it is, don't go against Bruce. He is the best at what he does, and he's not the villain here."

"Neither are you, and I don't think it is necessary to tell you where my loyalties lay, do I?"

Clark didn't want that. Clark didn't want factions within the League. He knew that despite Ollie being the head of the group, he and Bruce were above the rest, in a way, on their own right. Even if neither wanted. It was just who they were. And they were like light and dark. And that was good too. But having friends siding was something he wanted to avoid at all costs.

"Chloe, Bruce is no mad man," he insisted.

"I'm aware of Bruce's incorruptible concept of justice, Clark, but he doesn't know half of what I know about you," Chloe explained. "And his vision of justice right now is very one-sided. I'm just saying I'm keeping an eye on that."

"I trust Bruce, Chloe. He'll do the right thing, don't worry."

"Yeah, that doesn't sound too comforting, coming from the epic hero. Just so you know." Clark smiled lightly, and she decided to change the course of a conversation doomed to a loop of nowhere. "So...how did it go with Emil?," she finally asked.

Right. He had told Chloe about the appointment. "He dropped a few ideas. Nothing sure, but at least he's looking for possibilities."

"That's good, right?," she asked.

"Absolutely." Then he decided to take the talk where his thoughts had been wandering the whole day, and see where that led. "Emil told us to talk about it. Lois wants to keep it a secret for now. When she finds out I'm talking to you about this she's going to kill me."

Chloe couldn't help but snort. "Clark, if she finds out you're talking to _me_, believe me, you won't be the first casualty."

"I wanted you to know." Not by him. But he did want Chloe to share this with them. If only...Or maybe he was being plain selfish by imposing this on Chloe when he knew she would want to be there. Truth was that the further he analyzed it, the more confused he was.

"Hey," she said softly, placing her hand on his shoulder. "I know, Clark. Just don't think about this situation too much, it'll give you a headache. Believe me, I should know."

"I'm sorry," he apologized. "It's..."

Chloe didn't want to go over that again, so she opted to talk before he could finish. "How is she? Nervous?"

And Clark, admitting his mistake of bringing that forth once more, welcomed the question. "I think we're having a mixture of nervousness and excitement," he said.

"And knowing you, fear is on your own emotional cocktail, right?"

Clark nodded timidly.

"Clark, to be honest, I share your concerns, and I know this is not gonna help my cousin's cause at all, because if I were there, and could have a say in it, I'm not quite sure complete support for Lois would come out naturally."

"You're right, it doesn't help."

"I know, and I'm aware that the fact that you've decided to try is not a guarantee to success, and you might want to have that in mind apart from the risks. But I'm happy and thankful that you two have finally decided to do it. Truth be told, despite my fears...I'm excited and happy."

***

All reports had been sent, and Lex had taken his time on each one of them. He had several things very clear.

First, that they didn't have the boy in their apartment. Indeed there was no trace of him anywhere; all the reports on his search had come up empty.

Second, the Justice League hadn't made further moves, so he was confident that they knew nothing about his current activities, nor his presently active facilities.

But there was also one thing that bothered him. The hit on the three facilities that had led to Chris' rescue looked like a very well coordinated attack. Following the same patterns he had studied before on the so-called Birds of Prey and of a few from the League. When there was a certain someone directing them.

_I killed Oracle once. I can do it again.__ Whoever he or she is now_.

*****

**MUSIC INFO: **Queen 'You take my breath away' for Clark's talk to Lois about her soft side before Emil enters in his office.


	9. Chapter 8: Secrets and Clues

**Chapter 8 "**_**Secrets and Clues**_**"**

**Disclaimer: **not mine.

*****

_If you deceive someone you love in order to protect them...is that a bad thing?_

_And if so, how do you know it is? _

_Dad. He should know. He always seems to know what is the right thing to do. Actually, he makes it seem so simple that I don't know why I'm having this talk with myself right now; I bet he doesn't have to work so hard to reach conclusions. It is as if it's within himself, a part of him so rooted inside that he doesn't know how not to do it, as if he was born that way. Well, I wasn't. My father was his family's sworn enemy. So by blood, good is not within me, I guess. Dad always says that our blood does not dictate our lives. But Lex was...is all about blood and fate, and destiny, and he...he made me doubt myself, think that maybe there was a dark side that didn't need nurturing to get outside. I'm a mess. Do I tell them? What if Lex did something to me and we don't know it and then I go and hurt them and--_

"I do know one thing I don't like."

The voice, so sudden, jerked Chris out of his thoughts, turning around briskly to the cheerful voice.

"Now my two boys are taller than me. My neck is not happy about it, kiddo."

Chris smiled at Lois, unable to do anything else but that. And decided he would leave all those confusing feelings aside for now. "That's too bad, mom," he said matching her playful tone. "Your hugs feel warm and good as that very first time you took me from that bus. Am I not getting anymore of those?"

"Keep that pouting puppy-eyed face of yours attached to that cuteness and you'll have to unglue me using your Dad's strength."

Chris' face lightened. "So it worked?"

"Like a cookie with a dog. Come here."

Chris approached and embraced Lois, trying to find in her slender body the comfort he sought. Her inner strength made her at least twice her real size. When he met Clark, one of the things he told him was that humans were different, and he had to control his strength, but that didn't mean they were weak. Then he heard for the first time in his life the name of Lois Lane. Clark told him about the woman he loved, and how he always felt stronger when she was around him. Chris would know about that mysterious force soon enough.

"So you won't give up your hugs?," he asked.

"I guess I can always ask Smallville for extra back and neck rubs."

Chris broke the embrace and looked at her serious.

"Mom."

"Yes?," she replied nonchalantly.

He let one side of his lip curve upwards. "Aren't I supposed to be too young to listen to those things?"

Lois approached the bed to sit down, followed by Chris.

"I was hoping your imagination was underdeveloped."

"I'm afraid it's not," he announced as he sat down.

Lois rolled her eyes. "Mother to a teenager. So now I have to watch my tongue for all new different reasons," she added, warming up at the thought of the implications of those reasons.

"How are you feeling, mom?" Chris asked out of the blue.

As out of the blue as having Lois completely surprised and clueless by the sudden question.

"Chris, where did that come from, sweetie?"

His prior light mood had changed completely into a frown of such depth that he scarily reminded her of Clark when something was really troubling him.

"I'm concerned about you, Mom," he simply said. "You know, me, this, the circumstances."

Lois turned so she could look at him directly into the eyes, and she guided them into hers with her hand on his chin. "Chris, I don't really care about the circumstances," she said. "The important thing is that you're here with us now."

"You...you seem happy, but--"

"But what?," she asked concerned now.

"Shouldn't you be angry?"

Lois was struck; she would never have expected that coming from Chris.

"Chris, sweetie, why would you think that?"

He tried to explain without revealing his inner fears about himself. He only wanted to know how she felt, have a reference to help him deal. "I...I was kidnapped for a long time, and you seem like you don't care about that, like all you care about is the here and now. I thought maybe you needed to deal or something."

Lois was very serious now, with all the intentions of making Chris understand.

"Chris, I care about that. And it pains me to know what you've been through." As a pure reflect act, she passed her finger through the side of his head, like when she used to place his longer hair behind his ear. They had cut it in a military style. "But I also feel happy and grateful for having you back, and that, amongst everything," she emphasized, "is the most important thing of all. Understood?"

Chris nodded.

"I don't want you to see me mad, Chris, that is something you should not see before knowing completely how happy and grateful I am to have you back."

So she felt anger. "You're mad at him then?"

"At Lex?"

"Yes."

"You don't have the slightest idea."

"I don't want you to go after him, Mom." It came out naturally, he didn't even think about it. Nor would Lois ever realize how incredibly welcomed had been her following words.

"Clark, get out of his body. Now."

If Lois, who was the person who knew Clark best in all the world and she was comparing him with Chris...that was good, right?

"Chris, sweetie, I don't want you to be worried about this, ok?"

"I just wondered how you felt, that's why I asked. But I don't want you getting hurt because you want to...kick Luthor's a--butt," he quickly corrected himself.

One of her eyebrows rose. "Talking to Dinah too much?"

He blushed a little. Was that also a kryptonian trait or just a power she held on this race of aliens? Because sure as hell no other hero blushed as those two. Well. Maybe Ollie. Long ago.

"Sweetie, I'm not going to fight Lex just like that, I have my own weapons; they're called words. Lex is far more dangerous and insidious and devious than you may think, that's why he's still alive and free, we can't just go against him without support, it's like confronting an army with a flute."

"Or with carnations?"

"What?"

"The Carnation Revolution...in Portugal?," he said quietly when he noticed Lois' eyes were rolling backwards in an 'I can't believe this' way. All it took him was two seconds to put his puppy face back. "I...read it in a book," he said almost apologizing.

Lois kept the teasing tone. "And there I thought my husband was the only encyclopedia I would have to deal with."

Eyes opened wide. "You got married?"

"You kryptonians will never let me make my points at peace, will you?"

Chris smiled lightly. "It was a reflect act, sorry, Mom."

"Well, if I taught Clark to keep his vast knowledge to himself, I guess I can teach you too."

"For what is worth, I got the point."

"And don't worry, kiddo, eventually we will kick Luthor's butt."

If Lois said it, he could believe it.

***

This had been the first time Dick had come to the cave since he visited Chloe at her apartment.

The reason of his absence had been a mission with the Titans, filling in for Vic's absence as he filled in for Oracle's at the League. Bruce had assured him that being a couple of days away their investigation wouldn't make a difference, and by the time he came back, hopefully he would be able to have some of the data confirmed. And he was right. He had a name.

"So, Shiva?," asked Dick.

Bruce nodded. "But she didn't do it alone."

It hurt more than he had thought. Suddenly they had a name. He could put a face on one of the people who killed...them. He clenched his fists as hard as he could to maintain calm. And thought of Shiva and the implications imbricated on it. "Does Dinah know?"

Bruce simply shook his head no, with no further explanation, and continued updating him. "We must let her think she's off the hook while we look for the rest."

"And what about the data Babs took from Lex?," he asked Chloe.

Her face turned into a huge apology, even if unneeded. "I haven't been able to open all the files Barbara recovered, but I'm positive that none of them is linked to her death, they're all about Lex's facilities."

"Lex Luthor is good, Dick, he doesn't leave traces," added Bruce.

"It's not much," he stated as a matter-of-fact, not as an accusation.

"Believe me, Dick," assured Chloe, "Lex has been doing this for years. He knows how not to be caught."

"Bruce has also done his job for years." He paused. "And you, even if you changed your name."

Again, not an accusation, but it stung a little. And it led to a question hovering inside her head for several weeks now. Chloe hesitated, though. Dick seemed a real sweet man. He seemed like a good-natured man hit by life, full force, several times. And still he wasn't knocked out. He was probably finding solace in the goal of their current job, but still...she remembered the pain when she lost Jimmy. It was like having a million needles in your brain and heart that you could not take away but one by one; if you got lucky, maybe one o two per day. But one would always be there, never letting go. He seemed to be in a point where the pain was bearable. Maybe all the previous blows had hardened him; losing her mother had had that effect on her, and the fact that she was still alive made it the more painful; Jimmy had been the coup de grace. After that, dealing with the loss of a leg was a walk in the park, she'd felt as if complaining for being alive was the most ridiculous thing to do, even more after her first meeting with Barbara at the hospital, a direct friendly punch to the head to make her see that all in all, she was lucky.

Maybe because Dick seemed nice, because he deserved it and because Chloe didn't want to hurt him, she asked him.

"Does it bother you that I'm Oracle?"

Bruce simply kept working. That was something they needed to deal with, the sooner the better. He didn't even looked at Dick's reaction. Which was, at first, silence.

Dick turned looking at her wordless, for a second, not knowing what to say.

"I mean, the symbol," she quickly explained. "The fact that you have to watch it. The fact that everybody calls me Oracle and only a few know the truth," she added quietly.

Dick looked at her, his face unreadable. Finally he talked. Soft and honest. "A long time ago I was wise enough to separate Babs from Oracle. I cannot lie to you, Chloe, it pains to see it," he said looking at her screen displaying the green mask. "But it is not a common place for me."

"A common place?," she asked thinking she understood but needing the explanation nonetheless.

"When you build your life with a person, no matter the relationship, you share common places. A house, a spot under a tree, a song, a word. You inevitably link that person to them. Those places, I cannot visit them," he admitted. "They burn inside. The mask is different."

Chloe waited in silence for him to continue.

"Babs created Oracle, it was her way out ticket from her own hell, the way she fought to find herself again, to still make a difference when she no longer could be Batgirl. So Oracle meant something to her. And I was grateful for that." Absentmindedly, he opened a drawer, and his eyes met something he would've never expected to find inside the cave. Hiding his reaction, he looked at Bruce. He knew he cared, and he hurt, even though he was doing his best to hide it. He closed the drawer, deciding that it was the best place for Babs' doll to be, and kept talking. "But eventually, although she never let that pain and hatred for The Joker really go away, she managed to stay up on the ground, standing on her own two wheels, as she would say it. It was then that Oracle became a job. And that's how I saw it. No one can replace Babs, Chloe," he explained, "but Oracle is just an empty mask with a brilliant mind behind. And it should not be anything else but that."

She didn't know if Dick had meant it, but those last words felt directed to her.

Their conversation, however, was interrupted by Bruce. "I have another name," he announced.

Both turned to look at him.

"Zsasz."

Chloe was familiar with the name, but had only looked for what Bruce had asked of her; but Dick knew him. And knew what he was. And knew what exactly had been his role in Barbara's death. He fought really hard to keep himself anchored to the ground.

"I've been tracking him for a few weeks," he told Dick. "I visited him last night. He's got a new scar."

"You 'visited' him?," asked Dick still forcing himself to wait for Bruce's explanation.

"I drugged him in his sleep, he won't remember a thing."

"Bruce, why didn't you bring him in?," he asked, this time a hint of impatience in his voice.

Chloe merely listened. It was obvious that they both knew what was Bruce talking about, and she suspected it had to be with this person's involvement in Barbara's death. Shiva, a cold assassin with a personal component attached to, at least, Dinah. Now what?

"I had to be sure the scar tissue matched the date. I couldn't do it until I analyzed a tissue sample."

Scars? Now Chloe wasn't very sure she wanted to know.

Dick tried to deal with the news with the coldest mind he could, despite himself. And this time he really wanted Bruce to be wrong, for once in his life. A stranger plunging the knife into her body, that, as heart-wrenching as it was, he could take himself to think, he would be doing that as a job. But he had seen Zsasz kill. There was always a pleasure, pride, a sick lust in the kill, followed by a self-inflicted scar on his body to keep count and wear with pride. Damned that Lex Luthor. "Bruce, Zsasz is a lunatic, he could've killed anybody at that time."

"But he hasn't."

The words fell hard. Chloe started to understand.

"He'll notice somebody tampered with his body, he nurtures those scars, Bruce."

"I know. He'll probably leave the city."

"And you want that," said Dick in confirmation.

"Bruce, you asked me to keep an eye on his bank accounts movements, is that why?" Despite their differences and her reserves towards Bruce, Chloe had known to trust him. With everything going on at that time, she hadn't asked for reasons when he had told her to trust him and to lose as less time a she could on this guy.

"Yes."

The knowledge didn't agree with Dick, though. "You knew he had something to do with this from the beginning?"

"I had my suspicions, Dick. But I had to be sure. And we knew he wasn't alone, I couldn't go after him before knowing who are the rest."

"And now you let him get away?

"Oracle is monitoring him, Dick. If he moves, we'll know when and where."

"That is not very practical, Bruce," said Chloe. "Doesn't it make this more complicated. I still haven't the slightest idea of Shiva's whereabouts, but chances are it is not in the States. We still don't know about the third party and the only one close home might leave pushed by you."

"Gotham City is not Lex Luthor's playground, Miss Sullivan. I won't let it happen. And the further they are, the more difficult for him to control any contingency."

Chloe could imagine a blank stare behind that cowl. But as usual, his reasoning was logical.

"Once we have the names this will go to the Justice League. And the League has the means to put together as many teams as necessary As far as I'm concerned, the further they go, the better."

"Ok, Bruce. You're the expert. I'll trust you."

***

"So how does it work?"

Emil looked through the microscope. "I wanted to see how your sperms react to the elements that affect your body. I exposed a batch to green kryptonite, the remaining sample, to solar cells."

"How can that make them compatible with Lois?"

"That's not my goal here, Clark," explained Emil.

"I don't..."

Emil sat back and turned towards Clark. "I have a theory. If we actually make this happen, there is a series of variables we must take into account, and, as I mentioned you, one of them is knowing how would Lois' body react were she pregnant with a half kryptonian baby. I don't want to take any chances, Clark, and the mother's safety is my primal concern."

Clark breathed. "Emil, if there's the slightest chance that this puts Lois' life in danger--"

"Lois will assume any risk necessary, Clark, I know her. And you have to know that there will be risks, but I have my boundaries, which I'm not willing to cross. If I see a serious threat to her life I won't carry on any procedure."

"Do you promise me you'll tell her the same when she comes?"

Emil nodded. "I will, Clark."

"So what were the results?," he finally asked.

"As I figured, your sperm reacts the same to both."

"So the ones exposed to the sun..."

"Direct exposure makes them stronger, so the embryo would be affected by sunlight, obviously at a lesser scale, which is good news," said Emil half smiling. "But I found something more."

"What?"

"Their structure. As I suspected, it's apparently identical to ours. Though they don't seem to behave the same." Emil looked at him. "They don't move. It's as if they don't know where to go."

"My physiology is not exactly the same as yours, so I guess kryptonian women is also different?"

"I'm guessing the whole reproductive kryptonian system is different, Clark. Your sperm is, for a lack of a better word, lost inside a female human body."

"I always assumed I could not procreate because I wasn't from this planet, and my sperm was different, but this one never occurred to me."

"Clark, if your reproduction worked as in humans, your sperm would have behaved the same, and there is a big chance Lois would've been impregnated by you at some point."

Clark realized. "But then--"

"She would've miscarried. Like you said, you're a different species. Has she ever said something about her period being irregular? Or cramps?"

"No. No, she hasn't. And she's not precisely a shy person about her body. She says it works like clockwork."

"Clark, it might be useful to talk to Kara," said Emil finally. "I think her help might be crucial."

"I understand. I'll call her. Thank you, Emil."

*****

**Notes: **ok, I'm not sure I just made a mistake that cannot be corrected, but I just realized while I was editing this chapter. We all know that Clark and Lois are not married in this arc. Lois doesn't feel the need to tie the knot with Clark. I'm not sure about how laws work with adoptions in the States (it didn't even occur to me that I should research it) or the kind of arrangement that Clark and Lois made with Chris when he arrived that first time. In the comics they are married by that time. So I'm just going with a 'Bruce did some magic because he was not going to be the one to tell Lois she should get married. Although it would've been fun to tease the alien that way'. So I hope that if anybody noticed it and sees it as a mistake...they will buy my excuse and agree with Batman.

Carnation Revolution: for those who don't know, it is a military coup that enabled democracy in Portugal changing it from an authoritarian dictatorship without using any violence, back in 1974.

During _**Link**_, Batman returns to the Clocktower, and mourns privately, finding and taking with him the little Batgirl doll Barbara always had with her (the doll is comic-canon, anybody having read Birds of Prey will know of it).

Zsasz was my first pick, because I remembered him from a story where all inmates escape from Batman, whose biggest threat at the moment is Bane. It wasn't deliberate, but when I was editing this chapter, I noticed that Dick's approach was a little cold, and it felt wrong because despite he's better now and they are all this bunch of stoic heroes, he lost a lot, and I thought it should be mentioned, even if he's this very stoic guy.

**Music notes: **For Chris' mixture of doubts and determination: **Pearl Jam** _**'Indifference'**_. You know, I keep trying to avoid flooding soundtracks with Pearl Jam songs, but dammit, Eddie is so freaking good with lyrics I can't help it. (link for soundtrack still not uploaded, I haven't finished it yet).


	10. Chapter 09: Color is Blue

**Chapter 9 "Color is Blue"**

**Disclaimer: **not mine.

**Note: **onto July, 17.

*****

"Have you thought about redecorating, Chloe? The place sucks."

"Thank you Ollie, it's always a pleasure having you and your sarcasm by."

"Sarcasm?"

Ollie was one of the biggest rolling-your-eyes enabler Chloe knew of.

"Don't worry, Chlo," said Dinah, "I'll kick his ass for you later." She paused a second. "Or now that I think of it...that leg of yours looks like nice enough to draw a bruise in his--"

"Thanks, babe," replied Ollie, "as if she needed any ideas."

"The place is very nice, Chloe."

"Thanks, Dinah." Chloe grabbed Ollie's jacket and Dinah's light sweater and talked as she took them to her bedroom. She hadn't had time to go and buy that hanger. "So, coffee, tea, juice?," she offered.

"Have any beers?," asked Ollie.

Chloe came back from her room. "I think I have a couple," she said. "Dinah?"

Dinah thought for a second. "What the heck? Bring some, it's been long since I last had a birra."

"Two beers, then." Chloe left for the kitchen.

"Long?," asked an amused Ollie. "I don't remember ever seeing you drink beer."

"It was one of those things I did with Babs, sweetie. You had them with Lois, I had them with my girlfriend; you know, that gorgeous redhead."

"Had I not known you two, believe me, I would've thought she turned you to the other side. There was some serious subtext going on there." They kissed. "You were a lucky girl to have her," he spoke softly, his lips brushing hers while he talked, and keeping their foreheads together.

"I was lucky," she confirmed. Ollie caressed her hair while he looked at her. "I am lucky now. I don't know what would've I done if you hadn't been there."

"Still here, and with no intention of going anywhere."

"Love you."

Soon, Chloe came back with the drinks. "I'm working tonight, so I'll stick to tea."

"Not that it goes well with beer, but we'll manage," said Ollie back on his carefree trademark tone. Chloe served the drinks and sat with them on an armchair.

"So, how's everything at the Bats'?," she asked. "Ollie told me about Dick's impromptu appearance."

"Yes. Turns out I know the whole family now."

"You don't," deadpanned Ollie. "Believe me."

"How is he?," asked Dinah. "I haven't seen him in a few days."

"For what I've seen, he seems to be really good at internalizing feelings."

"He grew up with Bruce," said Ollie.

"But in all honesty I think he's doing it to prevent himself from doing anything stupid, not due to any case of pathological stoicism."

"He grew up with Bruce," he repeated in a slightly more serious tone.

Chloe wasn't looking forward to talking about how she thought Dick was dealing with his loss based on her own experience with Jimmy, so she merely used her first impressions, unwilling to go deeper.

"You also happen to be pretty cryptic with whatever you're doing over there, Chlo, I hope this has nothing to do with spending too much time with them," said Dinah half-joking.

Fortunately, Dinah didn't notice Chloe's slight discomfort. And Ollie didn't know about Shiva, Bruce had decided Dinah had the right to know first. Within reason, given the very personal component. Plus it was so nice to see her smiling like her usual self that even not knowing how much was real and how much pretending to make it real, she didn't really want to be the one to throw it all away. "Bruce has a couple of names, but he won't tell me until he's sure," she lied. "He's got me focused on Lex and the kryptonite."

"Bruce the lone ranger," said Dinah. "At least we know he's the best, so he'll get those names." Dinah turned to Ollie. "Once you put another mission count me in."

"He thinks at least three people were involved, that Lex probably promised them something, or had some sort of control over them," explained Chloe. "So I'm working on that department. And on trying to figure out what was Lex doing on Chris. It has to be related."

"Chris seems ok, he's a sweetie," said Dinah. Then she stopped, thinking maybe she had talked too much. Chloe saw the discomfort.

Chloe was quick to sweep it away. "They told me, Dinah, don't worry."

"I think you'd like him, Chloe, he's a great kid. You'd actually be proud of being her mother."

Chloe chuckled. "From what I understand, my cousin is mom enough."

"You bet," said Ollie. "Somewhere in her mind there's a picture of a purple Lex choking at the end of her arm for kidnapping Chris." Then he asked. "Have you...talked to her? I mean, as Oracle?"

"We've exchanged a few files. Through e-mail. A couple of messages."

Dinah gave her a sympathetic look. "It must be tough."

"It sucks," said Chloe with a bitter chuckle in a vain attempt to make things lighter. "She's as good as ever, Ollie, she was already a step ahead of me on Lex' motivations."

"I read your report on that. If we can expose him before the elections his paved road towards the White House will be suddenly full of mines."

"That bad?," asked Dinah.

"Or that good for us if we succeed," said Ollie.

"Whatever happens, it will come when it's right, Ollie, I won't rush things until I'm sure Lo is out of harm," said a very serious Chloe.

"You can bet your good leg she'll be fine."

"Ollie, with Lois the magnet for danger I wouldn't bet my remaining toes' nails."

"No, I meant your _good_ leg, not the flesh leg."

"You know, Dinah? You might be right about that 'testing the leg on his butt' thing."

"Attagirl," said Dinah smiling. "But don't worry too much; Lois will have this bird of prey lurking around whether she likes it or not."

"We're moving to the Queen Tower in Metropolis until all this clears out," explained Ollie.

"Does she know?"

"Are you kidding?," said Dinah. "She'd send us back to Star city in a jiffy, to put it mildly."

***

Dick knocked at the door, and soon two friendly blue eyes greeted him. "Hey, gorgeous."

Donna hugged her friend. "Dick, it's so good to see you," she said.

"You too. I missed you those days I was with the Titans. But I'm glad you got to spend some time at Themyscira"

"It's always good to be there. Come on in," she said welcoming Dick inside, "I was finishing a set of pictures." Dick saw a room painted in white. He remembered what used to be there. The sadness dwelling on Donna's eyes gave the rest away. "I turned...I turned his room into a studio," she quietly added.

The spacious room now filled with flashes, umbrellas, a tripod, lenses and all sorts of photographic material had once held a colorful nursery. Even after the painful divorce and the loss of custody, she had the room prepared once she moved for her visiting days with her child.

"I didn't know you took back photography.

"As a hobby only," said Donna. "My work with the Titans and the League keeps me busy enough."

"I'm really glad of having you in the League, Donna."

"I get to see my sister more often," she said. "Can I offer you a drink or something?"

"Whatever you have is fine, Donna, thanks."

"So," she said while she went to the kitchen to prepare some tea, "how's everything?"

"I'm back in Gotham," he said. "I'm working with Batman on finding Babs' killers."

Dick didn't hear any comment from Donna. When he turned towards the kitchen he saw her leaning on the frame, with a sad and concerned look in her eyes that invited him to talk about it. "I don't know if it'll give me some closure, Donna, but I want to be there, I'm going to take part on it."

Donna approached him and placed her hand on his cheek. "I understand, sweetheart," she said. "I think it's good."

"I actually wanted to talk this with you. I'd like to send Oliver a request to have you in my team, whenever we have a mission on this. A friend by my side I can trust with my life would be nice."

Donna smiled kindly. "You know the answer to that."

"Thank you."

***

Clark entered rushing through the door, trying not to separate it from the hinges.

"Lois?" He received no answer, but the heartbeat was there, and steady. "Lo, are you alright?," he asked in a softer tone, already heading for the source of the beating heart.

"In the bedroom, Smallville."

Clark found her lying on their shared bed, a bag of hot water in her abdomen.

"Hon?," he asked frowning with concern, soon to be dissipated by Lois.

"Egg donation hurts. Just so you know how lucky you are to have your reproduction seeds where you have them, at a hand's reach."

Yes, the concern was replaced by the alarmingly increasing embarrassment she was causing in him lately, and despite his empathy towards Lois' pain, he couldn't help the chuckle escaping his throat.

"Yeah, you go and laugh," she protested. Then she shifted on her back to look at him. "How did you know to be concerned, by the way?"

"I dropped by the Planet, and Perry told me you had called in sick."

"Imagine that, Lois Lane calling in sick. I actually though twice before doing it, I didn't want to give him a heart attack."

"Well, you almost gave it to me." He sat by her side, caressing her hair. "Despite the pain, how did it go?"

"Well, who knows, I went there, I dropped my eggs and Emil told me about his experiment with your Clarkies. Seems they respond pretty bad to kryptonite and too good to sun light."

"Yeah."

"If it looks like a kryptonian and walks like a kryptonian..."

"Right," he confirmed. "Um...did he talked to you about risks?"

"Of course he did," she said matter-of-factly. But before Clark could ask anything, she continued as if that was the most normal thing. "He also told me about Kara."

Clark sat leaning on the wall and motioned Lois to snuggle with him as he held the bag on its place, not before warming it up again with his vision. Lois smirked.

"Handy."

"Glad to help," he whispered on her ear.

"So, you were saying about Kara?"

"She agreed to take all the necessary tests."

"Is it now a good moment to ask you about our first visit?," she asked out of the blue and very directly.

Clark looked at her quizzically. He didn't quite know what was Lois referring to, but she was in her 'take no prisoners' mode.

"You know, the hybrid thing?"

_Oh. That. Of course. She would remember._

"Since I'm laying here in pain because you decided to come from another planet, I get to ask you uncomfortable questions."

"Is there a way of getting out of this one unharmed?" Not that begging ever worked with her.

Both eyebrows agreed to rise at the same time. "Do you really need to ask?"

Clark breathed and started to talk. "I once met this kryptonian--"

Lois turned to look at him. "You know, that legend about you being the last son of Krypton is very epic, but utterly overrated."

"Tell you what," he proposed, "whenever you feel very angry at me, you can write an article about it."

She rolled her eyes mockingly. "As if it that was going to help my career and marriage."

"We're not married, Lo," he stated.

"Oh, you know what I mean. Now, tell me about the other kryptonian. Where is he?"

"He's dead. Brainiac killed him."

"Oh, Brainiac. Of course. So this one's from your Smallville years."

Clark nodded. "Yes."

"And what was his thing?"

"He had been living on Earth. As a human."

"That doesn't sound different from you."

"As a real human," clarified Clark. "Married with a human woman. With kids." Lois stared at him with a blank face. "With his own kids."

"What? Clark, why...? How? I mean-- You waited all this time to tell me that?"

"I--" Clark struggled to find the words. "To be honest, it didn't occur to me until we decided we'd try."

"I'm not even going to try and understand that, so just tell me how he did it."

"I've never told you about it before, but there's this other kryptonite. Blue."

"Blue kryptonite?"

"Yes."

"..."

"Lois?"

"Aiming for a rainbow mineral catalogue of your own planet?"

"Black is not a rainbow color," he corrected, thinking of all the kryptonites he knew of.

"Should I name my next story 'A Geological Survey of Krypton: how Superman brought a sample of each radioactive mineral with him, Munsell edition'?"

"Actually we discovered it is not a mineral, but instead of tearing him apart with an article, you can be magnanimous with your beloved undocumented soulmate and listen to his explanation."

"Or I can do that."

"The Blue kryptonite makes me human. I don't know the specifics, but my guess is it reacts affecting my physiology."

"Clark, maybe the Blue K is not kryptonian. Maybe it was made by this guy. Or maybe it is and it was bioengineered by kryptonians to..." Lois stopped abruptly in realization.

"To what?"

"To be able to reproduce if they were ever to survive Krypton's extinction."

"What?"

"Clark, think about it. Every species fights for survival; it adapts. They don't disappear willingly. Your father had been on earth, and your father knew Krypton was going to explode."

"Lois, if Jor-el had wanted me just to survive and live as a human, he would've sent me with blue kryptonite so our kind would survive. He made a different choice for me, and he was right in doing so."

"But he's your father, Clark. Your emotions among us would be enhanced over kryptonian standards. Your human experience would lead you to desires all humans share, and your biological condition as a living being would give you an innate desire to reproduce. Your kryptonian side would suppress it, but are you telling me Jor-el, _the_ scientific didn't take that variable into account when he planned your trip? I don't buy that. In fact, I don't even know why I didn't think of it before."

"Hon, I don't really think you're being realistic."

"Ever since I found out you were an alien my threshold of realism rocketed up, Smallville."

"So what, Lois? I don't have the Blue kryptonite, and we don't know what effects it could have."

"And I will be the last to suggest exposing you to radiation, Smallville, but blue K is going to be on the top of my questions to Jor-el if we ever come to that. And if I'm right and it is not a natural chemical element, rock, whatever it is, it means that it can be made. In a lab."

That statement bore two different meanings.

One was spoken by Clark. "It could mean a chance for us."

The other by Lois. "It also brings a very dangerous prospective and too many obscure points. Like you losing your abilities."

"They come back as soon as the kryptonite goes," he explained. "And before you ask, there was no trace of it found in Chris' body," he anticipated.

"Losing your powers is probably the first sudden effect, Clark, but we're talking about physiological changes. Those don't happen overnight."

"You mean Superman would be taking a vacation."

"Forced and with lots of visits to a lab."

"Well, we've already admitted to ourselves that we cannot make a baby the old fashioned way, so I don't bear romantic images of the conception," he said trying to ease the conversation with some Lane style.

Although this time Lois was not receptive to it. "Yeah, but can the world live without Superman? I don't think I want to have such a burden. Neither should you."

"Whatever we do, whatever happens, Lois--"

He never got to finish that sentence. Not even after the first kiss.

*****

**Notes: **

For non comic readers: Donna Troy had a son, who died together with her ex-husband on a car-crash.

The kryptonite thing is a headache. How the gold / blue K works exactly, I'm not sure. I didn't review those Smallville episodes from, season 7? So maybe I'm wrong and the only thing it did was taking the abilities away. Right now, this is all my invention.

**Music notes: ****Devendra Banhart**, '_The body breaks_'. Ollie and Dinah. For the pre-beer moment.

Post end of this chapter, Lois/Clark **Vinicius de Morales with María Creuza & Toquinho** "_Eu sei que vou te amar_"


	11. Chapter 10: Harsh, but Life

**Chapter 10 "****Harsh, but Life"**

**Notes: **A week has passed. It's July, 25.

**Warnings: **uh...someone calls himself an a**hole and Kara makes an illustration of some kryptonian realities that some may disagree with. I enjoyed thinking them as well as their role at explaining things in a "logical" way. Any kind of feedback will be welcome, as usual. Enjoy.

*****

"Lane, Kent, office!"

Perry's voice traveled its way through the busy bullpen from his office.

"Well, I see Perry's throat is back, and as good as ever," mumbled Lois.

"We better go before we get yelled at again."

They both stood up and went to the office.

"You know?," said Lois, "I miss the basement days, when if somebody from upstairs wanted to talk to you, they had to use the phone."

Clark merely snorted at her statement, making Lois turn her head questioningly. "What?"

"You don't miss the basement days, Lois," he remarked.

"You're right, I don't."

"And FYI, he does yell through the phone too."

"Does he?"

"You don't talk to the people downstairs very often, do you?"

"Is it that obvious?"

Clark didn't have time to reply, Lois was already entering the editor's office, only to stop abruptly in front of a young redhead staring back at them smiling.

"James Bartholomew Olsen," the young man said extending his hand. "But you can call me Jimmy."

If you didn't know Lois Lane, her smile and quick handshake to the newcomer would be regarded as a professional and normal act of acknowledging somebody. If you were Clark Kent, one of the few fortunate people to whom Lois Lane opened herself to, you'd know that those gestures and her quick apology to go back to work were nothing but a fruitless attempt to hide a mixture of shock, sadness and pain.

"Pleased to meet you, Jimmy. I'm Clark," he said returning the handshake. "Excuse Lois, when she's busy with a story--"

"Oh, no worries, Mr. Kent," he said cheerfully, "I understand."

"Kent, do me a favor and show him around, I want this kid to know where the coffee machine is ASAP."

"Of course, Perry," said Clark, turning back and stumbling with the same chair he stumbled on every time he went into his office.

"Sorry," he said. "I can't seem to avoid this chair, it seems," he added sheepishly, not oblivious at all at Perry's rolled eyes.

Who seemed blind about everything except for his merry mood was the young photographer, who turned to Perry before leaving with Clark. "Thanks again for the opportunity, chief," he said enthusiastically shaking Perry's hand.

"Oh, for crying out loud, not another one!" Perry protested.

Clark and Jimmy got out of the office. Clark noticed Lois was not on her chair.

Jimmy's question interrupted his thought. "What did the chief mean by that?" he asked a little worried.

"He doesn't like to be called chief."

"Oh, gosh, I'll try to remember that!" he enthusiastically apologized. "Thanks for telling me, Mr. Kent."

"Don't worry. And call me Clark."

"Of course! Sorry, Mr. Clark!"

Would there be a point in saying that he had meant just 'Clark'? Observing him, Clark decided there wouldn't.

"I guess I'm nervous, first day and all," he continued. His enthusiasm covered any fear the boy might harbor. "Oh, it's going to be great working with you, Mr. White told me I'd be assigned to City; I have to be honest with you, Mr. Clark: I have a deep admiration for Miss Lane, I hope she likes me."

Clark managed a smile. "I'm sure she will. Listen, Ja--Jimmy." Clark realized how hard it was to say that name. "I have to check on something. Would you mind having a walk around on your own for a while? I suggest you go downstairs, they have a pretty neat camera collection on the ground floor, I'm sure you'll like to have a look there."

"Jolly! That would be great! Thanks, Mr. Clark!"

Jimmy went down, leaving Clark with an odd sensation inside. The resemblance with his older brother was striking. As his keenness. A sad smile took space in his face, remembering Jimmy's face when he confirmed him he was the red-blue blur. That smile, just hours away from his dead. Chloe didn't talk much about their last moments together, but secretly Clark hoped there were happy memories within her. That somehow, beyond the outcome, beyond the pain, Chloe held that smile he hoped she got to see once more as a sweet and warm memory. Because if Jimmy ever smiled those last moments, it would have been because of her. Thanks to her.

Once the kid was out of sight, he focused his hearing.

Her heartbeat took him towards the restrooms. The single sound showed that she was alone. He gently pushed the door open and entered.

"Lois?"

Once he stepped inside he could see her drying her face. "Clark, this is the ladies room."

"I know. I don't care."

He approached her and kissed her forehead, examining her eyes for traces of tears. There were not, but only because he knew she had probably fought hard not to.

"It's just...somehow it caught me off guard," she quietly spoke. Clark didn't say anything. He just held her in his arms. "Some reporter, uh?"

"Best there is," he whispered.

Lois let herself lost in his arms. "It must be my damn hormones," she said trying to excuse her sudden change of mood.

"It must be the fact that this makes you hurt," he gently corrected. "And it's all right, Lois. I'm here for you." Clark looked at her and she reached for his lips.

"I know," she said after kissing him. "And I was the one helping having him here, even if it's just on probation, but I can't seem to be able to take Jimmy's face out of my mind."

"Me neither," he confessed. "But, try to see the fact that he wanted to be here, and you made it happen."

"At the potential cost of my sanity, at this pace."

Clark reflected on her words. "There's a lot in your mind right now, isn't it?"

She nodded, but she tried to shove away the importance, like she used to do. "Chris, baby, ghosts from the past...nah, just a regular day at the office."

Clark tightened his embrace, not really wanting to let go. "It will be alright, Lois. Somehow it will be."

"I know, Smallville. But the journey doesn't plan to be a piece of cake."

"Somehow I don't think you'd enjoy it that way."

He blessed whatever spoken words made her chuckle.

"You're right, farmboy. It wouldn't. So let's enjoy this bumpy road properly," she said while she looked at him as if expecting something.

"Which means..."

"That you bend over and kiss me silly, clueless mild-mannered reporter."

***

Kara had been a good help. It was obvious by the outer constitution of both genders in kryptonians that they were biologically designed as mammals, and their bodies pretty much functioned as the human did. The breasts in kryptonian women had the same purpose as in humans, and by Kara's description of her aunt Lara's pregnancy, the process seemed very close to a human one.

The scans had showed however a different structure that explained why Clark's sperm wasn't able to find the way inside a human body. Kryptonian women did not have functioning oviducts: the conduct connecting ovaries and womb had been altered. By kryptonians themselves, seriously hampering reproduction. Kara had calmly explained Emil the reasons. The scientific logic behind that ablation didn't vanish the emotional wrench Emil felt.

*

_"The Krypton I knew was the result of millennia of systematic destruction of nature, Dr. Hamilton," she said. "Of exhaustion of subterranean sites of energy and mineral sources, of destruction of forests and of an overdevelopment of huge cities, growing uncontrolled under the banner of so-called progress."_

_Emil stood silent._

_"The Krypton I knew," she continued, "and generations had known before me, was an artificial planet, existing only by means of sheer survival of a few oasis, and artificially re-created primary products."_

_To her it was the most normal thing, Emil told himself in a stern effort to understand the coldness of her telling. It had been her reality. She had grown up with it. She had not known anything else. _

_Yet it hurt._

_"We were alive only because the same science that had destroyed our ancient natural wealth, had the resources to keep us alive, both as a civilization and living beings. But the damage had been too big, and only my uncle Jor-el, Clark's father, had been brave enough to accept that they had hurt their home to the core."_

_"How did that affect your reproductive system?," Emil attempted to ask._

_Kara stood silent a few seconds, and he wondered if he had gone too far in his asking. But she continued. She was doing this for her family, and Emil understood how important was that for her. But telling someone about the cruel population control laws you lived in, norms that left you barren, probably for life...It was one thing to choose. But this was something completely different._

_"You must understand, Dr. Hamilton, that__ Kryptonian population could never be one person over the quantity of resources available. It was a question of survival within an equal society, and nobody questioned that."_

_"Equal society?"_

_"There was a hierarchical structure to keep the order, but hunger, poverty and social differences were something unbeknown to us. The thought of its existence was intolerable. I never questioned that law," she said._

_"It doesn't make it any easier," he replied in sympathy._

_Kara smiled. "It happened centuries before my birth. It never bothered me much."_

_"So what happened?"_

_"Kryptonians started to modify the female reproduction system."_

_"To mutate it?," he asked. Kara nodded. "And there was no conflict?"_

_"We couldn't grow back the resources we had destroyed, and the animal and plant species that had survived were highly protected in order to make them grow again," she said. "But the landscape had been forever changed, so the species not adapting to arid areas were doomed to confined and isolated populations. Kryptonians knew and understood that from a very early age. It was how it was. You don't question this things, Dr. Hamilton. You just act accordingly so you can live." Kara saw his discomfort. "I can continue another day if you wish," she gently offered._

_Emil reacted, he was acting like an asshole. He gathered his thoughts, reminded him why they were doing it and apologized. "No, Miss-- "_

_"Just Kara."_

_"I'm sorry, I was...I was a bit more carried away than I should have. Please, do continue."_

_"__Some scientists came up with a gen that when injected into women would start a process of retraction of the...how do you call them? They connect the ovaries with the womb."_

_"__Fallopian tubes."_

_"That's right. This gen had a controlled spatial mutation range, so it would only affect this conduct, not the rest of the reproductive system, internal or external," she remarked. However, looking at Emil's clueless face she realized that she had been too explicit in her explanation, so she elaborated further. "Kryptonians had their physical aesthetics deeply imprinted, as well as their physiological gender differences, despite the laws" she said._

_The continuous use of the past tense whenever she referred to her people didn't escape Emil's ears. _

_Kara continued her explanations oblivious to Emil's reflections._

_"They didn't want genetic alterations to affect women's conceptions of themselves. Breasts were seen by kryptonians as an identity agent and essential organ, and given their historical background, for women it meant their affirmation that they were the ones feeding the children: it was a feral reaction to the accepted castration."_

_Emil knew how much Lois complained about the kryptonian's cold mind, especially when referring to Kara and Jor-el. He had assumed it was because it made them cold people, watching the world through an unhealthy lens. It was obvious that neither her nor Clark knew about this reality, but the doctor wondered that maybe Lois sensed the stoicism, not the coldness attached to them, and that was what really made her mad. Because she knew kryptonians could feel far more than Kara allowed herself to. The way Kara was describing that harsh reality, as a scientist whether it was a medic or an almost anthropological explanation had nothing to do with the view Clark had of reality. Never delusional, but real. Yet somehow full of warmth, of a complete truth about facts and people that seem to go beyond human comprehension. So secretly he hoped that Lois and Lana, who had become very close with her, could someday knock some humanity in her, and make her belong._

_"I take it that the change was permanent?"_

_Kara nodded. "In twelve generations the retracted organ was naturally inherited by all girls born."_

_And Kara was no exception. _

_"Only a number of women were allowed to procreate each generation. The Population Management kryptonian law had an age of reproduction set," she explained. "Every woman reaching that age went into a process of selection, given the case that she was willing to have a child, and if she was qualified, her body would be readjusted only to be altered again once she had given birth and it was certified that the baby was fine and would live." She smiled. "My aunt Lara was selected." _

_"But you weren't."_

_"Oh, I knew I met the standards. I just hadn't reached the reproduction age when Krypton exploded and I was placed in the ship."_

*

Words demolished.

Kara had concealed Clark that harsh reality of their planet, because Emil knew he would hurt despite her efforts to hide it behind a varnish of science. She had also told him that due to the alteration of their bodies, conceiving children had become difficult. Sperm, used to find an abrupt end, didn't seem to be able to know where to go once they had a new path to choose. Half joking she'd talked about those silly tadpoles preventing her to have a little cousin.

That had helped. So most successful conceptions in kryptonians had been through IV techniques. And of course, Kryptonians had not been willing to change that because it had turned out to be an added means of reproduction control. As for how would a kryptonian-human hybrid developed inside a human womb, she didn't have a clue. That was a thing for Emil to find. And only under the condition that Lois' life would not be put in danger, had been her final remark. A condition they all, maybe except Lois herself, agreed upon.

That whole background gave Emil a newborn respect and admiration at the stoic woman, taken as an adult out of a dying planet and doomed to extinction once she died. When all in all, our existence was meant to keep us alive with no other utter motive but reproduction.

But now he had some solid ground to work on. If he found a way for the sperm to be compatible with a human egg, they would only have to lead them.

Far-fetched, he knew. But he had learnt to believe in the impossible long ago.

Most realizations of the existing laws of nature had come up with random events and unseen evidences realized much later. Newton and the apple, Darwin and the finches...

Emil got to work hoping to find his own unsuspected compass.

***

His pacing from one end to the other enhanced his words. "This is madness, Dad."

"Chris, we've talked about it...," said Clark trying to reason with the teenager.

"Yes, I know, but try and stay encased in a fortress for two weeks when you're actually free."

"I thought you went out with Diana almost everyday," said Clark.

"It's not the same."

No, it wasn't. Diana's plane enabled Chris to get out of the Watchtower protected, but it still was an enclosed space.

That wasn't flying.

"It's not the real thing," Chris said.

Indeed, it wasn't.

"I know, Chris, but it is for your own protection."

"Dad, I understand that. I know that going to Metropolis would be like...well, Mom wouldn't approve, but--"

"Ok."

Chris looked at Clark not understanding. "Ok what?"

Clark sighed. "You're right, this is unfair to you, maybe we are being overprotective," reasoned Clark.

Chris didn't hide the surprise in his face. "You are?"

"Going back to Earth is out of the question, but I guess...I guess a little walk won't get us killed." The slightest of smiles curved his lips.

"I promise not to tell Mom."

"You better. Otherwise I'll say it was your fault."

"Dad, you're the best!," said Chris jumping towards him.

"Ok, then," said Clark. "A quick flight, above the clouds, we go, we come."

*

Soon, father and son were flying over the skies of Africa. Chris looked below.

"Dad, I know you said above the clouds...," he started.

"We are on a safety altitude, son, don't worry," said Clark.

"We're heading North."

"So?"

"We're about to fly over the biggest desert on Earth. Here the trade winds blow away the clouds, so it's not really over the clouds, right?...On the other hand, I don't think camels will tell anyone about us."

Clark couldn't help but laugh. "Alright. Let's go East."

"Until Australia?," he tried.

To no avail.

"Mongolia tops, Chris, I have to get back to--" Suddenly Clark stopped dead, making Chris nearly hit him.

"What's wrong, Dad?"

Chris only saw Clark's concerned frown and focused eyes on him. A little frustration and the very characteristic tilt his head made when he was trying to listen to something. Then, an order, and by his seriousness, he wasn't about to rebate.

"Back, now." Chris obeyed, and soon, they were back inside the Watchtower.

Ollie was passing by from the meeting room where he liked to work, just having finished filing the request Dick had sent him about leaving Troia available, when he saw Clark.

"Well that was quick," he said in his usual carefree tone, soon changed into a more serious face when he saw Clark's clenched jaw muscles. "What happened?"

Ignoring Ollie, Clark gently led Chris to stand in front of him. "Stay still, Chris," he said while he scanned him. Ollie saw the squinting of his eyes. "Damn it," he suddenly growled.

"Clark!," said Ollie a bit louder. His friend looked at him.

"You're scaring Chris, what's wrong?"

Clark looked at the boy. "I...I'm sorry, Chris," he said realizing his protective instincts had gotten over disregarding Chris. He explained himself to both. "When we went outside, I started hearing something. A frequency. It came from Chris, but I can't see anything."

Ollie sensed his discomfort. "Clark, we have a scan at Medbay, maybe there is something you're not supposed to see. I'll call Cross, I think he's available."

***

Clark cursed himself. When he had scanned Chris looking for damage after the League rescued him, he hadn't thought about tracking devices implanted on Chris. Lex had done it. A tracker lined with lead and small enough to be unseen near the distal end of the scapular spine where Dr. Mid-nite had found it. Once they'd been out in the open away from the protective shield of Diana's plane, it had began transmitting.

Thankfully, Lois was not coming soon, so he had some time to calm down. Chris was ok, the danger had not been to his health, otherwise experimenting no changes. He was resting now. Ollie approached.

"Clark?"

"I'm angry," he said. "I should've predicted it."

"Don't beat yourself up on this, Clark. Granted this sucks, but--"

Ollie and Clark didn't always see things eye to eye. They knew that and they had learnt to respect their differences. But even knowing themselves that well, Ollie did not expect Clark's sudden assertion.

"It's time to end this, once and for all."

*****

**Notes: **I never understood how could life exist in a Planet mainly made of icy crystals, because that's what you see in the movies and the Fortress of Solitude (don't know that much about the comics). My questions increased with Krypto. They had dogs? Where were the wolves the dogs came from? And wildlife in general? As I said, I don't know about the comics, so I made up my own story; and this explanation seemed the most logical to explain kryptonian's survival in that apparently barren land. Yeah. I went deeper trying to explore also homosexuality, but as interesting as it was, didn't fit in the story.

**Music notes: **

**Coldplay** "_**Everything's not lost**_" Clark and Lois' little bathroom talk.

Kara's description of Krypton: **Lisa Gerrard** "_Gloradin_".


	12. Chapter 11: Works Like Clockwork

**Chapter 11 "Works Like Clockwork"**

**Disclaimer: **not mine.

**Warnings: **slightly mature contents (but it all depends on your imagination).

**Notes: **Aug, 2nd.

*****

Clark knew that the talk with Kara had helped. Emil had told him about the difference in kryptonian women's reproduction system as some sort of birth control, quickly passing to discuss the possibility of IV fecundation once they found a way of making the sperm compatible.

Lois was already under treatment: Emil suspected that the problems she could suffer from carrying a hybrid child would be related to the womb walls and the placenta; not just making her body accept the new life as completely human and keep it, but dealing with whatever metabolism and strength the fetus had. Lois had welcomed the extra protein diet –the hormones and other medicines not so much. Clark had subjected himself to all sorts of embarrassing tests concerning, as Lois so bluntly and between snorts had put it, 'the ethology of kryptonian tadpoles: how to find the way'. Thankfully, Emil was a complete professional.

Given that Clark's only sexual experiences had been with human women, Emil had figured that the only reason they had not conceived before, despite the fact that the baby would not survive, was that kryptonians had designed some sort of birth control for men too, involving the behavior of sperm. Something Kara didn't know about.

Emil had designed some sort of intelligent drug; its specifics, Clark didn't really want to know. The thought of drugs affecting not the structure, but the conduct of cells? It was scary. Scary as the fact that he had willingly subjected himself to it.

He had shared his concerns with Lois. Her response was very much her style: once she had her mind on something, she made the logic of her statements overwhelming. In this case, she'd said that the problem was in the capability of motion of his motile sex cells, that the problem was created by his people, and that if he didn't want to go and ask his father, very much against her opinion, he would shut it and take the goddamned pills.

She had a way with words.

And she knew it.

Uncharted territory, that was this for them. But so far, what seemed impossible had found answers, and rather quickly. Not that he complained about that. Most of the paths they were taking, Clark had never thought he'd walk, especially not this particular one. Looking at the shelves before them and staring at Lois, he knew neither had her. She looked as lost as he was.

"I didn't know these things evolved as quick as computers," she mumbled. "How about these?," she proposed.

Clark looked at the box. "Lois, I don't know," he whispered. "I've never used them, you know? I thought you could help on this one."

"Don't even go there, Smallville," she threatened.

"Well," he said shrugging, "it says complete sensibility."

"Well," she mimicked, "we already tried the flavored ones."

He snorted despite himself. "Did they, uhm...work?," Clark asked, still trying to adapt to the fact that they were actually having that conversation and making it as normal as they could.

"Let's leave it as it is just not the same," she said. "You know, I'm very fond of my tongue, Smallville, and these things hamper my skills down there."

Clark very silently and very selfishly thanked all existing Gods for the distant cry for help ringing in his ears at that very moment. "Honey, I have to go," he quickly said trying to hide his relief. "Traffic accident."

-- _Or so it seems._

"Chicken."

-- _There's not much screaming now. But I heard the crash, I have to check if everybody's all right._

"Honey, we've been here long enough, I'm sure you can make the decision on your own. You know I trust you with my life."

-- _Does swearing count as a cry for help?_

"That's one of your poorest excuses, Smallville."

-- _I really, really have to check. I am Superman, I help people._

"Hon, I really, really have to go."

-- _I am a chicken._

"See you later," she said kissing him on the cheek. "Love you."

"Love you too."

_-- I am a chicken in love._

Clark was gone after dispatching the pharmacist his best sheepish smile while he knew she was leaving her alone with Lois. She had been watching them and patiently waited for them to choose, so when the woman finally asked for the box of condoms, she just made one final question, hoping she would answer, have the woman get the box, pay and leave.

"Size?"

A pause. A sly grin.

***

As he had suspected, the accident bore no victims, other than material damage. Before heading for the Planet, Clark went to the Watchtower. While he waited for Chris to get back with Diana, he spent some time chatting with Ollie.

After a quick update on what he knew about Chloe's and Bruce's advances, Ollie went back to his favorite topic of late: the baby. It seemed to Clark that somehow Ollie knew and understood their private and almost shy desire to be able to create a life together, and was wishing that they'd really do it. Ollie was many things, but beneath that mocking and cocky attitude there was a caring person, fiercely protective of the people he loved and despite himself, more responsible than he ever thought he would be. Indeed, Ollie had been one of the people who had grown up the most ever since he met him. All in all, having him as a friend was one of the things Clark felt proudest about. So when Ollie took his usual carefree talk to approach him about making babies, Clark took it graciously and let his friend lead the conversation until it reached the blushing point, which eventually would come. Because Ollie couldn't help himself, nor did he want to. At this very stage, he was trying to understand the procedure.

"So basically, your sperms are being trained to try and not get lost while Emil tries to find a way to make them compatible with Lois' eggs."

"That's right," said Clark. It really sounded stupid when you said it out loud.

"Because of some kryptonian bioengineering, right?"

"It seems the most plausible explanation." It sounded stupid and a little scary. By Ollie's next question, Clark suspected his friend felt the same.

"Do you spend a lot of time thinking about your planet?"

_Right to the bull's-eye._

"I try not to."

Ollie quickly changed the course. "And Lois is taking whatever to adapt her womb to whatever may come if you guys get pregnant and in the meantime, just in case you're able to get your tadpoles to hit the place," he said to be sure he was understanding everything, "before she's ready to hold your super baby...you have to wear a condom?"

_Reaching the off-limits area now._ Clark nodded.

"Regular condoms contain them?"

Clark tried his best to make the conversation seem as serious as they were with Emil. "Apparently the designed drug also works as some kind of strength inhibitor."

"Man, aren't I glad Emil works for the good guys. So, do they work?"

"So far, they have, I ... I check them," said Clark, knowing he would regret having said that for the rest of his life.

Ollie tried, very really hard, not to snort. He couldn't. "Welcome to humanity," he said grinning.

"Yeah, wouldn't you know about that," remarked Clark.

"I learned the hard way," he said. "But now that Dinah's cured and I'm not a cheating jerk anymore, she's the one taking measures, not me. How about Lois, is she?"

"No, just me. There are some contraindications," he explained. "She cannot take it while she's having the hormonal enhancers or whatever they're called and, can we just stop talking about this?," he asked, the threshold of normal exceeded long ago.

"I was asking as a concerned friend. You know I care for both of you," he deadpanned.

"It doesn't make it less weird."

"Ok, change of topic then," he said pouring some juice on his empty glass. "Dinah was with Lois the other day. She came back with the impression of being about to mess up."

"Why?," asked Clark, "Lois didn't tell me anything."

"Dinah stopped her tongue before it was too late. She didn't know that Lois was in the dark about Chris' tracking device event."

"She's got enough in her plate right now, and this doesn't change anything," he explained, receiving an understanding nod by Ollie. "Besides, I think my quota of bombshells to throw is full right now."

"Anything new?" asked Ollie curious.

"Jimmy Olsen."

"Jim--What?" Hearing that name, amongst anything, was literally the last thing Ollie would have thought could come out from Clark's mouth.

"James Bartholomew Olsen," he clarified. "The new Daily Planet photographer. Who wants us to call him Jimmy, like his late brother."

"You have got to be kidding me."

"He started a few weeks ago."

"Lois...?"

"Long story. Lois knows. It's not her knowing it I'm worried about," said Clark.

Ollie realized. "Chloe."

Clark looked at him. "I don't know how to tell her, Ollie, I don't even know if I should. I mean, bringing more painful memories from home while she's away?"

"I saw him at his funeral, you know?," said Ollie. "He was just a kid, not understanding why suddenly his big brother was gone and being buried in a town that he didn't know, surrounded by strangers." He paused a second. "I was too swallowed in my own guilt to wonder what the little guy felt at that moment, but I remember Chloe talking to him."

"She did?" asked Clark. He had been watching from afar, and he vaguely remembered Chloe approaching someone. A kid. Must have been him.

Ollie continued. "I was at the other side of the casket, Dinah was with her. I don't really know what they talked, but Chloe gave the boy Jimmy's camera, so you can have a guess. Clark, I don't think Chloe will hurt much by knowing Jimmy's young brother is around following his big bro's steps. I'd say she'd be happy, in a way. But I can tell you she'd be really pissed if you kept it from her and she found out one day while watching the name under a picture. She reads the Daily Planet, you know?"

Both friends shared a look.

"Tell her, Clark."

"Yes, you're right."

"Sometimes it happens," he said smirking. Clark chuckled. "So, why didn't your lovely not-wife come?"

"She had an appointment."

"Doctor?"

"Oracle."

***

She was nervous. Really nervous. The patient screen waiting for the other end to make the move wasn't helping either.

"Ok, Lo, I know it was me who brought you into this, but...damn, this is hard."

Chloe opened a channel and waited for Lois to write. She had sent her a text to her cell phone, and Lois never left her cell alone. It was an extension of her; her useful appendix. So why the delay?

The message came, but far away from being the expected answer.

_This is over_.

Chloe had to look at the screen twice. What kind of message was that?

She typed back.

_Miss Lane, I don't have time for games, this is very serious._

The answer came right away.

_Reason why I'm cutting this nice chats. You call me or let me call you or I pave my own road through the League. Call me._

"Dammit, Lo, don't do this, please.

_Please._

***

"Let's see where's your limit, big green head."

Lois had not had the best of her days, and talking to a screen was none of her liking, fact aside that she found it counterproductive.

"Time to get the head in front of the curtain. You call or I stop this," she sternly said to the screen.

The screen came empty, and for a few minutes it remained that way. Until a few words reappeared.

_Got something worth my time? Because I'm busy._

"Funny way of dodging me," she said to herself.

_No, I don't._

_I'll call you, Miss Lane. When the time comes. Meanwhile enjoy your e-mail. Oracle out._

"Damn proud lady," groaned Lois. "You are my most frustrating source, you know that? Oh, great, now I'm talking to a screen."

Lois opened her e-mail and downloaded the files she'd been sent. Oracle would destroy them afterwards, leaving no trace. Every security measure was essential. But she was too tired to go through them at that moment. "Guess the day caught up with me, and it's not even evening." Lois saved the files in her external drive and went to the bathroom, suddenly her bladder screaming 'freedom' at her. Something more came out, making shake her head tiredly.

"Great. Just great."

After placing the tampon in, Lois went to the kitchen. There was a calendar where she kept track. "Like a frikkin' clockwork." She lowered her head and took a deep breath. Then headed for the shower before going to visit Chris. She didn't want to look as miserable as she was feeling in front of her son.

***

As if waiting for the elevator to come, Clark and Diana stood in front of the transporter that would, any minute now, bring Lois to the Watchtower.

"Chris is a great kid, Kal, I have enjoyed spending time with him."

"Thank for doing it, Diana. I hate the idea of keeping him here, but knowing he at least can get out on your plane and spend time with you, Ollie and Dinah helps."

Diana nodded in acceptance. "So, how's Lois taking it?"

"Fairly well," he said. "She hasn't gone to the Luthor mansion to kill him despite her desire to do so, and she's kept herself at bay in the Planet too."

Diana's eyebrows arched. With the little time she had, and not being a citizen of Metropolis, whenever she read the Daily Planet she went directly to International, hardly ever City. But Lois' reputation was well known. And she knew her well enough. "Lois cautious about something?"

"Well, it's...complicated," said Clark trying to make Diana understand there were other reasons yet not to be talked about.

Diana didn't seem to pay attention to him at all. "Oh, of course," she said as if realizing, "the baby."

"Diana," he said, "it was supposed to be a secret."

"I guess you will have to talk to Ollie. He told me. But I'm sure I'm the only one to know."

"Actually you're not," he confessed. "But I would like to keep the circle closed."

"Having children is a wonderful thing, and you two must me on a cloud," she reasoned, "so why the secret?"

"We still don't know if we can conceive, and Lois doesn't want the pressure of everybody else's expectations on her."

"Of course," she said in genuine understanding. "Have you thought of adoption?," she asked. "Besides Chris, I mean."

Clark smiled. "Yes. In fact, given our situation, and my own background, it's always been the normal option for us. It's still there."

The sound of the transporter cut the conversation, not before one final remark from Diana.

"You know, Kal, as your friend, you can count on my help if needed be," she offered.

"I know, Diana," said Clark sincerely. "Thank you."

"I know people would start talking again about you and me, but if her body is the problem..."

It took Clark a few seconds to digest her words' meaning before he recovered his speech. "I don't think Lois would be too keen on that idea. And truth be told, her body is more my fear than her concern." For the second time in one day, Clark blessed an interruption, this time Lois herself.

Lois got out of the transporter and was greeted by Clark's embrace, letting herself feel it.

"You smell fresh," he said.

"I just had a shower. Hi, Diana," said Lois noticing the other presence standing there.

Diana greeted her with a smile and a handshake.

"Clark, Perry wanted to talk to you, I told him you'd be there soon."

"I'll go then. See you later, hon."

"Bye, baby."

As Clark left, the two women walked towards Chris' room. Lois couldn't help noticing Diana giving her a sideways eye while they walked. It had been year since she had known Diana. Years to learn to respect and admire her. And also to come to know the Amazon and to deal with all the annoying aspects inherent to her nature, like the one she was feeling now.

"Ollie or Dinah told you before Clark told you that I wanted to keep it a secret," she blurted out.

Diana never cared to hide the obvious. As annoying as it could be, Lois liked it. "Yes."

"And you asked him about me."

"As any friend would do."

"And you offered your womb, just in case."

_How did she--? Oh. Of course._ "I--"

Lois cut her. "I will get pregnant, Diana, thank you." Lois entered the room without looking back. Diana smiled and left, thinking about such a loss for the Amazonian population.

***

Treating the almighty Wonder Woman as an equal, and even being the one to end a conversation did not make for the anger outburst Diana had arisen inside her. How could she? How could Diana be that annoyingly perfect with such naturalness and keep it as the most normal thing in the world? How could she dare to tell Clark to use her body if necessary? And today of all days. Stupid Amazonian constitution.

Her thoughts, however, did not reach the seething level, because they were soon severed by Chris' grin as the door opened and the boy realized who was visiting.

"Mom, I was wondering if you'd be able to make it."

"Hi sweetie. I wouldn't miss coming," she said hugging the boy. "How are you doing?"

"As best as I can in here," he said resigned, "but I get lots of visits, and at least I can get out in Wonder Woman's plane." The mention of that name caused some reaction in Lois, a sudden loss of smile. "Mom, are you alright?," he asked frowning.

Lois' reaction was neither smooth nor swift, confirming Chris of his concern.

"I am, sweetie," she lied, "why do you ask?"

"You look a little sad." He decided that Wonder Woman's name was not the cause and spoke of what still bothered him. "Is it because of me?," he softly asked, worry adorning his face.

And Lois, once again, melted inside.

"Sweetie, sit down," she said motioning Chris towards the bed. Chris sat on the mattress with her, all concern, and she quickly spoke to calm him. "Chris, if anything, I feel joy for having you here. Don't you ever doubt it, not even for a second. I cannot feel sad, you're alive."

"Then is it something at work?," he guessed, trying to find out what bothered his mother. "But work never made you feel sad, right?," he reflected, even more confused.

"And it still doesn't," she confirmed smiling slightly.

"What then?"

"Chris, I don't feel sad."

Chris' look told her he did not buy it, and Lois wondered when had he become the second person in her life to which she could not hide her feelings.

"I'm just a little disappointed by something else, that's all. You don't need to worry."

"But I worry, mom," he quietly said.

Lois swallowed. It was one thing avoiding people at work and the rest of the superhero community; it would even be fun dodging Ollie, and she knew Dinah wouldn't ask unless she spoke first. Diana had just stopped being a problem. But Chris was different. He was her son, and she wanted to share it with him. If they were a family and her kid was a grown teenager, it was time to treat him as such. "Chris, honey, how would you feel about having a little sibling?," she finally asked.

Chris stared back at her wordless for a few seconds before he reacted with a mouth full of chained questions. "You mean...I...Mom, are you pregnant? Something went wrong? Are you feeling alright?"

"Wow, wow, stop it, kiddo," she said quieting the nervous rambling. "I am not pregnant," she confirmed. "At least not yet."

"Oh." said Chris in understanding. "The 'not yet' part being the problem?," he carefully asked.

Lois nodded. "Clark and I made a decision. We've just started, and you know the odds are not precisely in our favor." She tried to dismiss Chris' sympathetic look keeping her self-pity tears at bay, but the damn hormonal cocktail threatened her Lane genes. So she decided to use her enemy to win the battle. "Kiddo, as awesome as we know I am," she said snatching a chuckle from Chris, "I sometimes let myself be affected by small things. And believe me, hormones during a certain time of the month affect me more than I want. So really, don't worry, sweetie, it's just one of those days."

"Well, for the record," said Chris now back to his smiling self, "I will love to have a little brother or sister. And I know I will."

Chris' voice was no longer that of a child, it had changed, it was grave and sound. Strong. Her kid made her feel protected and gave her an inner strength to fight for him at the same time. They were going to be so proud of him.

***

The day had been ordinary. Between work, between his other work and family, Clark could not complain. And the prospect of having Lois at home for the remains of the day lightened whatever concerns he had.

"Lois?"

The voice greeted him from the living room. "Hey, Smallville."

Clark frowned a little. The voice had not sounded as enthusiastic as usual, and the face that came with it didn't seem to disagree with his feeling.

"Seems you had a peaceful day," she said while she watched the news.

"Yes," he said. "You?"

"Nothing out of the ordinary either," she answered.

Clark sat by her side and let Lois rest against his shoulder. "Any word from your special source?," he asked, hoping that at some point Lois would tell him what was bothering her.

Lois nodded. "I have some new files. With the visit upstairs and all the work I forgot to take a look."

But she said no more, so Clark took the direct approach. "Lois, are you alright?"

"Yeah, I am," she said matter-of-factly. "Why do you ask?"

"Honey, you've just told me that you have files on your most important article and you haven't looked at them."

"I'm a little tired, Smallville, I'm entitled, aren't I?"

"You're also a genius dodging bullets a.k.a. questions you don't really want to answer."

"Look who's talking."

Clark turned to look at her, serious and concerned. "Lois, tell me what's wrong."

She finally closed her eyes and let herself fall listlessly against him again with a heavy sigh. "Nothing is, Clark. Everything's normal. Just plain normal. Suckingly normal." Clark looked at her, clueless. "My period came this afternoon."

*****

**Notes: **It was discussed in Knall: Dinah was cured from the damage preventing her from having children when she was thrown into the Lazarus pit by Babs in order to save her life (Birds of Prey): previously, it had been R'as al Ghul himself who had told her, upon her confession of not being able to have children, the one who had implied that the pit would cure her. Ollie also told Clark that they were waiting a little before trying.

**Music notes: **Joan Manuel Serrat "Aquellas pequeñas cosas" (Those little things). A bittersweet little song for the little bittersweet Clark/Lois moment at the end of the chapter.


	13. Chapter 12: The Fear Within

**Chapter 12 "**_**The Fears Within**_**"**

**Disclaimer: **Not mine.

**Warnings: **sexual content.

**Notes: **Moved onto 14th Aug.

Apologies for the delay in updating. I don't like delays, but life happened and it couldn't be avoided.

*****

Gotham is a city of over a million citizens. What are the chances of having two of them you don't want to see in a close range, not tonight, in this very spot, only separated by height?

Silently swearing, Bruce placed a tracking device on the car and called Oracle. She answered right away. "Oracle."

"I have a tracker functioning, can you check the signal?"

"Hold on a sec," said Chloe from the other end of the line. Not a second later, she confirmed. "Got it. What do you want me to do?"

"Keep an eye on it. Batman out."

The owner of the car he had been following was one of Bane's usual contacts, a renowned professor at Gotham's Science University, responsible for the design of Bane's favorite drugs. He'd been tracking him for months, waiting for the moment to catch him once and for all.

Tonight would've been a good chance, had it not been because he saw Huntress' silhouette standing on the roof. On that roof. A place he knew very well because it gave visual of Zsasz's apartment.

What were the chances?

Bruce climbed the building through the outer stairs and silently reached the top. Helena was a born natural tracker; he knew she had heard someone coming, yet she didn't move: apparently she was better than he thought, because even when he came closer from behind, she didn't even flinch, knowing who was standing beside her without looking.

"You know he's not there," said Bruce.

Helena's sight was fixed on a dark window. There seemed to be not a trace of emotion, nor in her mouth, neither behind that mask. "Dick told me about him. I had to see," she simply said.

Bruce knew that was the only name she was aware of. He had asked him not to reveal Shiva to any of them.

"Oracle's on him. We know where he is," he said. "When the time is right, we'll catch him."

"He probably made his new brand scar with the same knife he stabbed her with."

Neither expected Bruce to answer. It was just a statement.

"Have you an idea of how much I want to crush his face on the ground until it's nothing but a bloody mass of pulp?"

Helena didn't take her eyes off the window. Bruce didn't know if she refused to look at him because she was struggling with her emotions; her voice didn't betray her façade.

"He will be brought to justice, Huntress," he said.

"You can't blame me for wanting him to suffer."

"No, I can't," he conceded, "but I can expect you to be civil."

Helena let the air free through her nostrils, shaking her head in disbelief as she smiled bitterly.

"Helena."

Bruce waited. She didn't move.

"Helena," he insisted, and this time placed his hand on her shoulder. He felt the slightest shiver, and finally the raven-haired woman looked at him. She had been struggling. Her red eyes revealed her. "I need to know that I can trust you," he softly insisted.

This time she let the emotions reach her voice, which nevertheless did not lose its steadiness. "I'm not sure I can make you that promise, Bruce. Not with this.

"Do you think Barbara would want you to--?"

Helena jerked his hand off her shoulder as she cut him sharply with words. "Don't you dare, Bruce," she said through clenched teeth. "And you don't know her as well as you think. If Dinah had been the one killed..." The words were unnecessary.

Hell hath no fury.

Helena was wrong, Bruce knew Barbara. He might have not been close to her when she led the Birds of Prey, but the Birds existed after many years of awe, descents to hell, continuous challenges and odds defied, side by side with him.

But Barbara was dead now, and Dinah was alive.

While Barbara was more reserved, Dinah was never one to hide her feelings for her friends. Even if Dick hadn't confirmed his concerns about Dinah's reaction when she was told the names behind the murder, he would've known. The bond between her and Barbara was not to be taken lightly at all.

"It's Dinah who worries me," said Bruce.

Helena's expression turned into concern matching her question. "Is there something wrong with Dinah?"

"Not yet," he said, "but it might be once she learns who else is behind it."

"You already have two names?," she asked with a hint of annoyance. "Why the hell are you keeping this from us, Bruce? Why didn't Dick tell me"

"I asked him not to reveal it to any member of the Birds," he replied. "I wanted to tell you myself," he simply added. "I was planning on telling you soon."

"So you've been following me and waiting for the best moment?"

"No. I was following someone else. Tonight's just a coincidence."

Helena looked at him in silence for a second. "Ok. Here I am, then. Spit it out."

"It's Shiva."

The words sunk in. Helena was stricken. She took her time to swallow the name, and betrayed her inner thoughts with disbelief in her words. "It...it cannot be."

"Lady Shiva was one of the murderers," he repeated softly. A world of emotions revolved in her eyes, but now that the truth was out, Bruce needed her to know everything and, the hardest part, keep her focused. "She was the one who held a hand-to-hand combat with Barbara to unable her. I need you to tell Dinah."

"Me? Bruce, Dinah and I are friends, but if you think I'll be able to hold her once she learns about this, you're seriously mistaken. She _will_ kill Shiva," she asserted.

"She won't if you talk her out of it," he insisted.

Helena shook her head. "Maybe you should talk to Ollie."

Bruce took her by her shoulders and looked at her sternly. "I am asking you."

"Bruce, she'll pay no attention to me, Ollie--"

"Ollie wasn't there when you sided with Shiva. He doesn't belong to that part of Dinah's life. You know better the situation. I'm asking you."

Helena looked back at him, studying his visible features, trying to see what was behind his harsh words. Bruce's rudeness was never gratuitous; there was always a reason for it. Barbara had told her that, and the years knowing him had only confirmed her late friend's statement. He wasn't undermining Ollie as Dinah's support, he was just being himself. Bruce couldn't do things openly; he would always test them, point them in the right direction and let them be the best in what they did. Right now, that meant for her to get the dirty job done, use her friendship with Dinah to help her and let Ollie the hard part of keeping the pieces well glued for when the time came.

_But you would choke in your own blood before admitting there's a heart somewhere inside, right, Bruce? Stoicism reaches ridicule levels with you_.

"Ok. I'll do it."

_And God help us if you're wrong, because there will be no one in the world capable of stopping Dinah._

***

Lex finished reading the Daily Planet. Things were still doing well for him. That Troupe must have grown a hernia while writing the column about himself. Lex had to admit he was enjoying it.

And still not a word written by Lois Lane.

Clark's involvement in the Presidentials was at local scale, so he had not been an annoyance in that kind of way.

Pouring his scotch, he indulged himself on the few seconds on which the brown liquid crushed on the ice cubes. Lex loved the sound of them on the crystal. He didn't like to be interrupted on that moment of the day. He saw the glow emerging from the laptop screen reflecting on the chair. He'd been expecting a report to be delivered by Dr. Grohl.

He calmly finished the contents of the glass, placed it carefully on the round small table and went to his working computer. A devil grin appeared upon the simple sentences displaying on the screen.

_Effects appeared on subject. First results satisfactory. _

Even if this was a mere beta testing, the results were more than promising.

***

Ollie had always kept his place in Metropolis. Their home was Star City, and had been for a few years now, but Metropolis was still a special place for him. It had all started there.

"It's good to be back, babe," he said content while he embraced Dinah from behind and kissed her neck. "After all, our history kinda kicked off in Metropolis."

"Kick off?," she asked amused. "Ollie, we met in Metropolis. If anything was kicked there, it was your gorgeous butt. We really made out in Seattle, hon."

He raised an eyebrow. "Kicked my butt?"

"Yours and Chloe's. At the Daily Planet?" Ollie said nothing, making her chuckle. "You're a quick forgetter, you know?"

"Ok, I remember," he said, "but you had such impact on me that the butt-kicking thing faded away immediately."

"Sweet-talker," she said. She gave a sly grin, though Ollie didn't see it. "Well, FYI, he might not have mentioned it to you, but Clark's ears were also seriously harmed during the production of that fiasco."

"Fiasco, uh?" Dinah turned herself towards Ollie. "Nice disclaimer," he said smirking.

"You know I'm the poster girl for honesty, sweetie, and I screwed up big time siding with Lex."

"Yes you did. Luckily we where there." Dinah nodded and kissed him to cut the conversation, but rather than ending it, she took it to the next phase. "Wanna check the new bed?," he asked smiling.

"You bought a new bed?"

"Yup."

"Latex?"

The sly grin was his this time. "You won't know until you try it."

"Then what are we waiting for?" Before any took a step, Dinah's cell began ringing "Well," she half-protested, "apparently I'm waiting for someone to call me." She saw the little screen. "It's Helena," she said in a slightly serious tone while taking the call. Helena never called just to chat. "Helena," she said.

"Hey," she said in a dry tone. "We need to talk."

Dinah gave Ollie a side-glance. "Sure. Tell me."

"In person."

Ollie saw Dinah's frown.

"I'm in Metropolis sweetie."

Helena gave no chance. "I can be at the Watchtower in twenty minutes."

It was clear she wasn't about to wait, so Dinah wasted no time in platitudes. "Ok, I'll see you there."

Helena responded with a dry acknowledgement and hung up.

"Something wrong?," asked Ollie.

"I don't know if wrong, but definitely important. She was more serious than normal."

"Not to be taken lightly. You told me she was doing fine, better by the day. Do you think she's having trouble again?"

"I hope not," she said. "But something tells me this is about something else. Ironic the quickest way to meet with her is the moon."

"The old transporter is working, I think," said Ollie. "If not we can call Clark and Lois, they have one at home."

"You build them by the dozens? It seems everybody has one of those lifts from hell."

"The League is wide, pretty bird."

"And the Queen's financial empire is huge."

"Our job is important. We need to be prepared for anything." Ollie kissed Dinah. "Will you be back soon?"

"Helena is not much for long conversations, and I'm not planning any alcoholic hang-out with her afterwards."

They kissed, and Dinah left a few minutes later. Right after, Ollie went to have a shower to try and relax. Something told him it was going to be a long night.

***

_Inside__ me. That's where Clark is. Metaphorically, always. Literally, right now. As heavy as he is, the mattress lessens the pressure of his body on top of mine, but I wouldn't mind it if he were heavier, for I relish the intensity he embraces me with after we've both reached our climaxes, as if wanting to keep feeling the level of closeness we have every time we make love for a while longer. We always end up like this, physically engaged, while our breaths slow down and we can't feel our hearts beating against each other's chests anymore. In between Clark's soft kisses on my neck, I caress his back with my right hand. With my eyes closed I can feel the warmth of our bodies; nevertheless I let my hand take a detour downwards, towards the spot between his navel and his groin, making him chuckle and earning a wet kiss for it. That's one of my favorite spots in his body. Frankly I never understood the attraction of the neck notch. This one's much better, and right now it's the best place to let my senses' memory drift back to what we've just done. That area where our bodies touch is where I best feel the heat, and the stickiness of the remaining sweat. My sweat. My own private alien does not sweat. _

_Or does he? _

"Clark?"

_He doesn't move, but answers with a hum and another kiss._

"Mmm?"

"Are you sweating?"

_The question reaches home soon enough, and now I can see two gorgeous blue eyes looking back at me, a little confused. The frown when he looks down to where my right hand is doesn't help sweeping any suspicions away, not even when he tries the never working Smallville's reassuring smile. I still don't know why he keeps using it with me after so many years._

"Don't worry," _he says, and I wonder if he knows who is he talking to._

"So you're sweating," _I confirm, now all internal alarms active._

"Yes, but this is not the first time this happens, hon."

_Is that supposed to calm me down? Because it isn't doing it. _"Not the first time?"

"Remember that time the barn door from my parents' farm almost hit you?"

_How could I not? I nod._

"I sneezed," _he simply says. _"I had been working hard to reconstruct the havoc caused by Zod and I--"

_Now that one makes sense at last. _"I offered a remedy that would make you sneeze and Martha and you babbled like crazy with stupid excuses." _Yes, I remember, and this is not the same._ "Smallville, as much credit as I would like to take for your sweat right now--"

_He smirks._ "You would, wouldn't you?"

"Not funny, Clark." _Not funny at all. But he looks at me more serious now. _

"I'm ok, Lois, don't worry. With all that's been going on, I guess I'm a little stressed right now, and that somehow increased my temperature.

_Oh yes, that would explain it all. My eyes rolling backwards speak for me._

"Honey, it might happen," _he insists._ "That time I was stressed too."

_I'm not about to let him off the hook. _"Will you talk to Emil?" _No, wait, I have to rephrase that. _"You will talk to Emil, won't you?" _Better now._

"I promise," _he says_.

"You're sure your ok, Clark?"

"I am," _he reassures once again_. "Want to see how ok I am?"

_And I expect him to get us both floating over the mattress, or to bend an iron or something, not his body suddenly moving, pushing slightly, catching me completely off guard as he makes his penis move again inside me. My body reacts almost automatically, and as my legs move to ease his movements and I let his mouth explore mine, I find myself lost in his eyes._

_I am in heaven, and-- and so not the moment to stop suddenly. _"Smallville, what are you doing?" _I swear he's slightly red right now._

"I..." _he looks down and then back at me in that childish lost boy look I usually melt at, but so completely weird right now. _"Do you think they...when it was deflated..." _I try to understand. Oh._

"No, Clark, I don't think so, it never happened to me with other boyfriends and I don't really want to talk about it right now."

"But--"

"Smallville, finish what you started."

_His mind is already there. Now he's worried. Now. There's no point in trying to finish it. Although he has managed to let my aforementioned concern parked until he talks to Emil._

"Sorry, hon," _he says apologizing. He slowly lets himself out, and I know he's checking. His alien mind can sometimes be so frustrating. But I know where his worries are, and despite me not agreeing with his swollen protectiveness, I know where it comes from and how genuine it is for him. And love is about accepting the other's good and bad things. And I love Clark like I've never loved anyone. So I breathe, I count to twenty, I wash away my frustration and I let him know it's ok._

"Everything alright?"

_He nods. _"I'm sorry, Lois."

_I sigh in resignation and sit, leaning on the wall while he takes the condom off, places it on the floor not before making a microscopic count to make sure every soldier is in close quarters, and sits by my side._

_And I know it is the moment for me to lead the conversation where I feel it needs to be taken right now._

"Clark, I know you're worried about me, and I understand."

_He just takes my hand and kisses it._

"But I don't want this to have you tense. We've talked about it."

_A pause._

"I know."

_Now for the hardest part._

"I wouldn't be the first woman in this planet to lose a baby, you know?"

_I say the words softly, carefully, but I know they hit him like daggers; I know they've hurt him, and I hate to do that, but he needs to understand where I stand in this. _

"Clark."

_He kisses my hand again but doesn't let go. _

"We can't fool ourselves, that is a possibility we have to assume, we may have to face it. I've thought about it from the very beginning," _I confess for the first time. _"It happens, sadly, everyday, and I think we have all the tickets for that."

_And by the tear running through the hand he's still holding tightly, I know that he has secretly thought about it too. And dreads the possibility. What I don't know is that the pain also comes from the memories I've just dug out._

"Mom lost a baby once."

_Now I am the one doing the hand squeezing. _"Martha?," _I ask quietly. His nod hurts. I caress his face. _"Baby, I'm so sorry."

"It was my fault, Lois." _His eyes are already red when he finally looks at me. _"When I destroyed the ship, it caused an explosion. My parents were close and got hit by the blast."_ I knew about the ship being destroyed. I thought he regretted having destroyed it, because when he told me the story the first time he was clearly uncomfortable. I didn't realize how far I was from the truth._ "Mom was rushed to the hospital, but it was too late."

_Everything makes sense. Finally I understand a period of his life that was always incomplete for me. _"That was the reason why you left, wasn't it?"

_He nods again. _"It was the only time I ever used red kryptonite willingly. I learned the hard way that my decisions had consequences, and those consequences could be dangerous."

"Clark, this is not the same thing."

"I know, but it doesn't change the fact that if you..." _he faces me. _"If it happens and we lose it, or if your body can't hold it and we have to...stop it--"

"We'll do what we have to," _I sentence._ "Clark, we made a decision, and as beautiful as it can be, it is dangerous, and we both know it. And I know you will not stop worrying about me, but if you think I'm going to accept this magnified guilt, fear and protectiveness for nine months--"

_He should cut my ramblings with those impulsive kisses more often. Seriously. It takes seconds before I can catch my breath. _

"Does that mean you'll stop worrying?"

"No. But we're in this together, and I don't want you to feel you're the only one keeping the hopes up. I just can't stand the thought of causing you pain."

"You won't," _I say smiling. Because I can't stand the thought of causing him any suffering. _"And whatever happens, good or bad, we'll go through it. As always. Lane and Kent."

_He chuckles and I sigh relieved when he holds me in his arms again._

"Smallville?"

"Mmm?"

"Do you think you can get back to business now? You kind of left things unfinished."

"Without worries this time," _he promises._

"And without protection," _I sentence, not letting go before he attempts to reach the drawer_.

*****

**Notes: **Gotham City does not sleep, so I figured that apart from focusing and investigating the murder, Batman is still the guardian of the city (helped by Dick and Helena).

The neck notch: little reference to _The English Patient_.

**Music notes: **

First scene, Helena/Bruce: **PJ Harvey** _**'Dear Darkness**_'. More than the lyrics, it's the mood of the song.

Serious part of Clark/Lois' scene: **Mandalay '**_**Enough Love'**__._ It provides an awesome atmosphere of intimacy.


	14. Chapter 13: A Big Deal

**Chapter 13 "_A Big Deal_"**

**Disclaimer: **not mine.

**Warnings: **understandingly, Dinah swears.

**Notes: **15th Aug.

*****

A mixture of anxiousness and excitement made Chloe's heart beat faster. She was closer than ever to decrypting the videos, and this time no impossible firewalls had led her work towards an abrupt end. Even more, the S.T.A.R. files on kryptonite had proved to be exponentially useful as a very valuable data record to understand the gravity of the situation once she had finally been able to open all the existing files on Lex's clandestine studies on kryptonite. She had spent the last two hours going through them, making sure to note everything, realizing, not with surprise, that she had come across a disturbing set of information regarding the most effective weapon to use against Clark. Bruce hadn't found anything regarding kryptonite on the samples recovered from the lab, and except for Lex, the only other person with enough knowledge on the subject was Emil, to whom she had sent a message to contact Oracle as soon as he could.

Bruce had given Chloe complete clearance for installing in the cave any device she thought could be useful to her. The Batcave was enough equipped to want anything new, but she had brought her own laptop for communicational purposes. Not just because the portable machine was only handled by her and she made a point to have control over her work, but also because it brought some familiarity, some sense of identity in a world built by and for one man and his clan. And Barbara might have been part of that, but Chloe was not, so the small grey laptop was her little flag on foreign land.

She feared that maybe she wouldn't be able to talk to Emil until morning, but the private channel she had opened to talk to him would be answered only a few minutes later. Emil always worked at late hours, and had never failed in his commitment towards the League, being one of the members of the group even before it officially became the Justice League. Actually, the fact that he had been able to have a social life and create a family was almost a miracle, and also one of the reasons that made Chloe a little adamant to the idea of calling him; a decade back she would've literally stalked him over the phone, but her own life had taught her to have certain boundaries when it came to others' private lives. The other reason was the fact that, together with Lois, Vic and Bart, he was among the fellow heroes she had to use the voice distorter with.

Oracle's secret identity wasn't known by every one yet. Of course there were many of them who knew who she was, mostly due to her time with the Birds of Prey. Luckily the Titans had not worked with her, so any time she were to work with them as a new member of the League, none would question her use of a voice distorter as a simple measure of security. As for the rest, Chloe's and Barbara's voice were alike, and so far she hadn't raised any questions. However, once they caught Lex, all that security might just disappear. And due to that, Barbara's death might suddenly need further explanations. As she made sure that the distorter software was active, Chloe made a mental note to talk to Bruce about that.

"Thank you for calling back so early, Dr. Hamilton, I'm sorry I dragged you from sleep."

"I figured if Oracle wanted to talk at this time, it had to be important," he said.

"It is," she confirmed. "You're updated on S.T.A.R. labs' studies on green kryptonite, I assume." The studies only covered the green type because it was the only variety publicly known.

"Yes, of course. They catalogued it as a dense component, but they were never able to isolate the atoms due to the campaign led by Superman to stop it," said Emil remembering the polemic measure.

"For all the good reasons, doctor Hamilton, as controversial as it was at the time."

"I couldn't agree more with that," he said.

Chloe remembered how the public opinion had polarized into being forth and against destroying the only material known to beat Superman, when the real motive behind it was what apparently Lex had done with it. "Sadly, Lex Luthor was amongst the people against it," she continued, "and your record in Metropolis more than a decade ago suggests you were close to that scenario."

"I was in Metropolis, yes," he confirmed. "But at that time Lex Luthor was reported dead, so my contact with kryptonite was of other nature, directly linked to my relationship with the Red-Blue Blur," he said in historical accuracy.

"As we know now Mr. Luthor is very much alive and has been playing with the green element ever since. And as you know, I am currently working with Batman in trying to uncover his activities in those labs."

"Yes, Green Arrow keeps me updated in case my help might be needed."

Ollie's identity was no secret inside the League, but as Emil knew nothing about Oracle, he decided to be prudent, although something told him that above everyone else, Oracle would probably be the one knowing every one's identities. Chloe appreciated both Ollie's ability to anticipate all possible contingencies and Emil's attitude towards secret identities. Emil had always been a faithful friend and helper. Someone you could completely trust. And by the way he acted, it seemed he hadn't changed a bit through the years.

She continued her explanation. "Luthor carried on S.T.A.R.'s research, Mr. Hamilton."

"And you found something out."

Chloe wished she didn't have to nod in agreement. "He discovered the unknown component and identified the structure like an atom. He knows the kryptonite's composition."

Emil was dead silent for a few seconds. "Oracle, what you're implying..."

"He can build kryptonite, Dr. Hamilton," she said. "Even worse: he can design it any way he wants."

Emil knew the danger of such an assertion; it was the ugly realization of a very dangerous reality. "If he increases the number of atoms..." He spoke in a worried tone, leading Chloe to finish the sentence.

"He'll create a highly radioactive kryptonite."

"Maybe even heavier than uranium."

"Worse, doctor Hamilton," said Chloe. "He'll yield a radioactivity he can design and manufacture at will."

***

Whenever Clark could greet the day in bed, he always awoke before Lois. Every morning he would open his eyes and watch her, mesmerized, for long minutes. The world hadn't needed him today, so there he was, looking at her. The truth was that after their talk last night, he hadn't been able to sleep; he had held her, refusing to let unconsciousness drift him away. Lois was energy. She was full of it. But there was also a calm, a sense of security emanating from her, oblivious to its surroundings, which gave him a peace and strength that lifted him somehow. Tonight he had needed to feel that power more than the rest that could come with sleep.

The first beams of sunlight appeared through the window. Kissing her softly on the forehead, he let her rest while he went to the kitchen to make breakfast for both. The smile of Lois at the smell of fresh coffee in the morning would be the bonus prize of a blissful awakening.

Along their years together, Clark had tried to instill in Lois some healthy habits he had breathed in Smallville. Chloe used to say no one could take the farm out of him. Had she been around them all these past years, now she would be making the opposite statement about Lois. And the only thing she had welcomed, the morning orange juice, was his mother's merit. Lois had found in Martha Kent a mother figure she never thought she'd have again.

Lost in his thoughts, Clark didn't realize he had not paid enough attention to the knife cutting the fruit.

***

When Lois opened her eyes she felt the absence of Clark's warm body, but she smiled nonetheless when by touching the now empty space, she didn't feel it cold. Led by the coffee smell like a kid to a chocolate pie, she went to the kitchen, with the smile still on her face.

Clark was on the sink, washing some dishes. When she approached, her smile turned into utter shock when she saw what Clark was actually doing on the sink.

Her heart skipped a bit.

He was washing the blood from a small cut on his finger.

***

Ollie hadn't sleep at all. Dinah had not come back. He knew better than trying to go after her, so despite the impatience and nerves, he had stayed home. Waiting. Ollie hated waiting, but he knew Dinah, and he was certain that she would've been mad at him for not trusting she would come to him.

Keeping that specific kind of trust was the most difficult thing when you were a superhero and the person you loved most in the world was too.

He knew Dinah would be fine, he had told himself repeatedly, but that didn't mean she'd be ok at all. Whatever Helena wanted her for, if it had kept Dinah from coming home, it meant it wasn't a good thing.

So when he heard the door opened he jumped from the bed and rushed to the entrance, stopping abruptly when he met Dinah's eyes, the only evidencing part of a painfully unreadable face. Ollie knew her to the very core, and he had learnt to read her inside those blue eyes. Something had crumbled inside, her eyes were sorely red, speaking of pain and rage.

Dinah stood in the middle of the spacious loft, and for a few seconds, both remained still in their places, eyes locked. Dinah looked like she had no strength left. Ollie braced for what was going to be told and approached her, never leaving his sight from those pained eyes, speaking through his own until he reached her and let her body rest leaning on his, in a futile attempt to protect her from whatever had hurt her, patiently waiting until she'd let herself talk again.

She didn't waste time, and the hoarseness of her voice was another painful clue of the result of tension and aching and crying for a whole night.

"Shiva was implicated."

***

_"Repeat that again." Dinah looked Helena directly into her eyes, wanting to be sure of wh__at her friend had just told her, because she refused to believe her._

_When Helena had led her to the meeting room and had closed the door so they could have their privacy, she had expected to hear some good news on Bruce's discoveries followed by some kind of secret mission behind the League's back to catch Babs' killers, sharing the information with her because of who she had been to Babs and placing her in a very uncomfortable position with Ollie and the rest of the League. Bruce was prone to act that way, and lately his relation with the League was on a tightrope. Not that it had ever been a piece of pie._

_If only Helena had told her that. Dinah had asked again, foolishly trying to change what had been said. But Helena's expression was the face of sorrow, and her tone the painful sign of her telling the truth. "Shiva was one of the murderers, Dinah. Bruce told me," she repeated quietly. "They're sure of it. Him, Dick and the new Oracle."_

_Dinah tried to swallow. She couldn't. Helena could feel the rising tension and anger, and hurt for her friend. Slowly, she approached Dinah, her senses revealing the tension going through her body as she got closer; there was no muscle in her body relaxed, her breathing was sharp and uneven, and her eyes were not in the Watchtower anymore._

_Dinah turned and resolutely walked towards the door._

_"Where are you going?," asked Helena fearing the answer. _

_"I'm going to rip her apart, Helena, I'm--"_

_Dinah found her pace abruptly stopped by a firm grasp on her arm. Her eyes followed the hand and arm holding her towards a strikingly serene yet serious face. __"Don't. Please"_

_Dinah moved her arm so Helena slowly opened her hand. When she was freed she turned towards her. "Do you honestly think you can stop me?" _

_"No. Nor do I want to," she simply answered. _

_"Then what?"_

_The League's meeting room was a wide space, with a table and chairs in the middle and monitorial equipment. A window replaced the custom paintings and memorabilia that used to identify the Society's old headquarters. All historical items were safely kept and preserved in other areas of the Tower. Ollie had decided to keep the meeting room free from them. It kept the younger members, easily impressionable, more focused in meetings. Right now it made the room painfully aseptic and big, in which every inch between became miles, even if the soft tone of their voices never dared to reach any higher. They say you can't listen anything in space. Their words were too painful to be cried for the other to listen. They were two friends in a room, and they cared for each other. They had been through a lot together. And one of them knew she was hurting the other even if she didn't want to. _

_Helena stood silent, letting Dinah find the truth by herself._

_"Bruce sent you thinking you'd keep me at bay, didn't he?"_

_Helena nodded. _

_"Damn it, Helena, whose side are you on?"_

_"__The side of what's right and wrong, even despite myself," she sentenced. "I didn't like the idea, Dinah, but I knew I had to listen to him. You know that in these situations he's the one with the cold mind."_

_Helena tried to comfort Dinah, touching her arm softly. She didn't expect the hardness coming from its tensed state. It was like touching stone. And then it crumbled like a rockslide, taking Dinah's emotion with it, not longer able to contain the tears._

_Helena challenged her own will to not getting any closer until Dinah said whatever needed to be freed._

_"Helena, I've been one fucking cold mind for months, now," she said frustrated "I have waited, Helena, I've spent my time trying to bring Dick back. God, I've tried it to help you too!" _

_The raven haired woman held Dinah as tight as she could, letting the rest of her emotions flow freely on her shoulder, feeling sorry and guilty, because it was true, Dinah had been there for them, and just because she had kept the brave face they had taken her feelings for granted, only worrying when they've learnt of Shiva. "I'm sorry, Dinah."_

_"It's not fucking fair, Helena," she said between sobs not letting Helena go. "It's not fair."_

_"I know, Dinah. I know." Helena let her friend let her emotions loose, thankful that she had chosen the meeting room so they could have their privacy. _

_Minutes passed, and she didn't dare to move until she was sure Dinah was more calm. Then she cupped her face and tried to smile. It was a weak smile, but as honest as her affection for Dinah. "For what is worth, Dick and me owe you. You really helped us, and I can't thank you enough for that."_

_"You would've done the same for me," replied Dinah._

_Helena turned serious. "But I didn't. And you needed it too. I'm sorry I was so selfish, Dinah, but I want to help now. We have to make this right, we cannot screw this one up, and if you let yourself loose..." Helena knew what Dinah was able to do. She almost felt sorry for what was coming for Shiva. Almost. She guided Dinah to the chairs. She had gone back to whatever place her mind and eyes had taken her when she first told her about Shiva. "Once they come up with the third name we'll make our move. Please, just give it a little more time, honey."_

_Patiently, she waited for an answer in silence, holding Dinah's hand. Wherever her mind was now, she felt the need to let her know that she was there for her. The stupid gesture had to work somehow._

_The minutes of waiting were long, and Helena knew they were over feeling Dinah's hand leaving her as her eyes came back, filled with resolve and staring directly at her. "Shiva is mine."_

***

"She's mine, Ollie."

Ollie examined her. Her formerly sad face when she'd started telling him about her conversation with Helena, between sobs and pauses, was now replaced with sheer determination and a very direct speech, two qualities of Dinah with which discussion was futile and useless.

"Dinah..."

"I'm getting her, Ollie, this is not a request."

Ollie sighed. He knew there was no point in trying to reason with her, and frankly, every fiber of his being wanted to go kick Shiva's ass and the rest of her body with her.

"You'll wait until they get the third name and schedule a mission?"

A second of silence.

"Yes."

"Ok. She's yours."

Ollie hugged her again and prayed that he had made the right decission.

***

"Lo, it's no big deal, hon, it's--"

"Not a big deal????," she asked perplexed and furious. "Excuse me, I am watching Superman bleed," she said raising her voice as if sensing she was not being understood. "Bleed, as in with blood, his own blood, just because of a tiny simple knife, and you're telling me not to fuss about it?" There was a ridiculous moment of silence before she continued. "Are you completely nuts? What the hell is wrong with you, Smallville? Blood also stopped flowing to your brain?"

"Sweetheart, I'm just trying to rationalize this."

"Rationalize? Clark, rationalized?," she asked again. "The rising prize of electricity come every new year can be rationalized! Perry's increasing annoying attitude with his age can be rationalized! But Superman freaking bleeding cannot be rationalized! For God's sake, Clark! You didn't even make the connection with Chris? With what we talked just a few hours ago? What if this is some kind of kryptonian illness? Haven't you thought about it?"

"Lois, just calm down. Of course I thought of that, hon. I'm just trying to figure this out," he said. "And, if we find out what might be wrong with me we'll be able to know what happened to him."

"Is that supposed to cheer me up, Clark? To think that you're suddenly prone to be turned into some guinea pig so we can figure out what on Earth's wrong with Chris? And you?"

"Honey, just calm down, everything's going to be fine," he said. "Come on, we're late for work."

"Work. Right."

Clark sensed he had touched some button he hadn't intended to.

Indeed, Lois was nowhere near the calming down point, nor did she think she should, and her self-control was perilously weak, letting some tangent emotions suddenly out. "I can't, Clark, I just can't."

Clark looked at her concerned. "You can't what, hon?" Clark knew how much him being hurt affected Lois, but by the tone, softer than her prior volume, confirmed him that all this had left a lees in her. He cursed himself, and holding the cloth Lois had hurriedly put on his finger to stop the bleeding, he touched her face with his free hand so she looked at him. "What is it, Lois? What can't you do?"

Lois spoke on the verge of tears, finally letting her emotions flow. "Go there and pretend everything is ok. I'm tired, Smallville; tired of pretending I'm fine, that I don't care about Lex lurking around, tired of pretending Chris is not here, of pretending that you're as healthy as a pear and that maybe one of this days I'll be pregnant and actually and for a change maybe able to share it as if it is something normal." The truth hit Clark, once again to feel bad for her. "And don't give me that sympathetic look, Smallville, it gets off my nerves."

"I'm sorry, Lo. I didn't mean to scare you. And I really wish you could talk about that with some other than just me," he said gently putting a hand on her stomach.

Her hand met his as she leaned on his chest. "I'm just angry, and scared, and really frustrated. I cannot share it, Clark, I can't go to work and beam despite all our doubts about the baby because I don't want to lie having to give explanations; I don't know if it'll work."

Chloe.

"You can talk to Dinah," he offered. "She knows. And she'd understand."

Probably better than other heroes.

Lois looked at him. "Dinah is a sweetheart, Clark, but right now I think she's the one deserving the friend. Despite what you guys think, I don't think she's completely healed from losing her friend. And don't even dare going to Diana. Fact aside that she offered her womb, a disturbingly perfect Amazon is not what me and my self-esteem need right now."

"I wish I could help you with this," he said, guilty, Chloe in his mind.

Chloe.

"Clark. Look at me." She placed her hand under his chin. "Look. At. Me." When he did she looked into his eyes, beautiful and honest, not hiding his fear. Her voice was a whisper filled with softness and reassurance. And love. "This is our decision, with all its ramifications. I knew what I was getting into. I'm sorry I snapped."

"I guess you had the right," he said.

"Yes, I did. That doesn't mean I should." Lois checked the finger. "It stopped bleeding."

"Yes." He looked at her. "I'll go talk to Emil, Lois, I promise."

"Good. Because otherwise I would have to drag your ass there myself. And you know I can do it."

"You know I wouldn't want you any other way," he said leaning forward until his lips brushed hers.

"Smallville."

"Tell me."

"I don't want those lips that far from mine."

Clark didn't waste a second in pleasing her.

*********

**Music notes: **Clark greets the day with Lois asleep in his arms. **Brian Hunt '**_**Half a packet of blablabla**_**' **("_There's not enough room for this light"_)

Ollie and Dinah before and after she reveals Shiva to him. **Bruce Springsteen '**_**Lift me up**_**'**


	15. Chapter 14: The Last Piece

**Chapter 14 "The Last Piece"**

**Disclaimer: **not mine.

**Warnings: **sexual content.

**Notes: **23rd Aug.

*****

Michael Wilson.

Chloe looked at the screen showing the last name. "So that's it, this is the third name," she said in a soft tone.

Dick stared silently at the unfamiliar name. Someone he didn't know, he'd never heard about. "It's the first time I see this name."

Chloe looked at him, unsure of how to ease the situation. Bruce had left the cave before they found it, so both were alone. The very night they unveiled the last piece responsible for Barbara's death, and he was not there. _Great timing, Batman_. "He was probably trained by Lex in the dark, he's pretty nifty for that."

"At least you managed to work out the whole profile," he added, not in a good mood. The data came with a date of birth. "He's just a kid," he managed to say in a neutral tone. At least tried to keep it neutral. _Had that boy really been aware of what he had just taken that night?_ Dick tried not to think about it, scared of the consequences. People just didn't know how hard it was to be the hero. But he had been in a very dark place very recently, and he didn't want to go back to the bottom of the well when he hadn't even reached the bucket at the top yet.

Chloe saw the tension in his whole body, as much as he tried to conceal it. She wasn't new to those situations. But it didn't get any easier. Tentatively, she placed a hand on his shoulder and looked up to meet his face. "At least we have him now."

He managed a short smile, and Chloe tried her best to keep any sympathetic face away from her. "Barbara was still finishing the new security system," he said out of the blue. "I was more worried of her taking it slow." Chloe's hand didn't dare to move from that shoulder, nor it was shoved away while he talked. "It never occurred to me that she'd follow my advice."

"Dick, don't..."

He placed his hand on hers and returned a kind smile. "We had earned that happiness, Chloe," he simply said. "That didn't mean we had the right to dodge reality. We are who we are, having a personal life doesn't change that."

Chloe looked down, meeting the ground in more ways than one. "No. No, it doesn't."

By the way she reacted, Dick sensed he had crossed a border Chloe didn't seem to be comfortable in, so he gently retreated. "At least we have him now."

Chloe welcomed the change and, with a short breath, nodded. "I will start preparing everything."

"I talked to Oliver about that," said Dick.

"I know. Thank you."

"For what?"

"For not wanting to make this..." Chloe struggled to find the words. _Thank you for not making this too personal? _It _was_ too personal. To help her take this back to the League because she wasn't sure she'd want to confront Bruce if he changed his mind as she feared he would?

"A part of me wants to snap, Chloe," he said understanding her verbal conflict. "Honestly. But I don't think I want to be that kind of person. I've seen what I could become. I don't like it."

Chloe stared at him, trying to understand. She'd been around heroes since forever, and the only stoic thing she'd ever done, came with an open door to a possible happy ending, provided that the other end of the bargain didn't kill her, that is. How did they do it? How _could_ they do it? "How can you?" She asked giving in.

"How can I what?"

"See the consequences of what you might and might not do. Decide. Move on."

Dick looked back at her, not sure if they were still talking about him. He wasn't aware of every detail, but he knew enough about her past. He remembered her recent shift to discomfort, so he, once again, opted to leave the matter. "I guess it comes with the costume," he wryly said, fishing for a chuckle that happily took the bait, making him smile in return.

"Maybe I should try one," she added half-jokingly.

This once, oddly enough, and cementing even more the stoic side of Dick, it was her who took the reassuring hand-on-shoulder sign. "I think you're doing just fine. Maybe we should focus on doing this and see where it leads us afterwards."

Chloe's gaze met kind blue eyes and decided he was right. Actually, he was probably more right than he knew. "You're right. I'll start right away. Expect a call in less than 48."

With a gentle squeeze followed by a firm nod, Dick left the cave to attend to other Nightwing business on the streets of Gotham, making a mental note to come back later and check if Chloe had left any progress report before heading for her appartment.

Chloe stared back at the screen with a very expected thought roaming freely in her mind. This was soon to be over. They were going to catch Barbara's killers, and hopefully Lex. And with Lex gone, there was nothing preventing her to come back.

Come back home.

The thought made her stir in a good way. She had made the decision, and it was final. And it felt good. Terrorizing, but good.

Losing no time, she started the standard protocol for multiple missions as she made a very important call, realizing the time a little too late.

"Hey. Something wrong?," he asked tentatively and in a low voice.

Chloe found herself too excited about the news to remember Oracle's 101 on security and private identities. "We've got them, Clark," she said.

Clark reacted a second later. "What?"

"We have all three identified, I'm preparing the mission right now."

"That's...that's good news," he said. "I'm..."

By his voice she knew he was home, meaning that Lois was close. She found she didn't care; even more, the thought of having Lois close made her even more determined.

"Brace yourself for my cousin's wrath, Boy scout," she said using Clark's first code name followed by a smirk, "for once this is over I'm coming back."

***

After the knife incident, and right as he had promised, Clark had gone to see Emil as soon as their job had let him. He had come back and informed Lois that he had again his blood tested, and several other tests and scans performed by Emil, who had found nothing out of the ordinary.

Lois didn't feel they were out of the woods, but at least she had succumbed to sleep that night, grateful to have at least one worry lessened.

The rest of the week had gone more or less uneventful, which, for their normal life, was pretty extraordinary; between her work and Clark's two jobs, they've managed to spend almost four complete nights together, and she'd spent time with Chris everyday, her boy being the happiest face when he saw her. At this rate of cuteness she was going to turn into a walking puddle very soon.

Tonight had been one of those lucky days Clark and her had had dinner at home, later cuddling on the sofa together with some 60s film on the TV as an excuse until they'd gone to bed between kisses barely making it to the mattress before the first commercial round started. Much later she had noticed Clark getting up from the bed to pick up the phone in the living room. The conversation was short, and by the time it was over, she'd expected to listen some kind of whoosh sound informing her that there was a job for Superman out there, so she was surprised when he went back to bed, gave her a shy peek on her cheek and snuggled beside her, his head on her shoulder.

"Everything alright, Smallville?"

Instead of the usual affirmative comment, Clark held her tighter and kissed her again.

"Lois, you know I love you, right?"

She gave him a mock sleepy glare. "Are you sure you're not affected by kryptonite?," she asked.

"I'm sure. Everything's fine, don't worry. Let's get back to sleep."

Hoping Lois would not notice his heart beating faster, Clark focused on hers to relax, with all kinds of thoughts rushing in his mind but with a true grin on his face.

***

Bruce woke up more rested that customary, as last night had not been very physical, even if he had gone back to the manor at a really late hour. Alfred had already left a jag with some juice, and figured the old butler would be around the kitchen waiting for him to wake up in order to cool something more consistent. Bruce put on his robe and went down.

It wasn't Alfred who he found. It was Dick.

"You know this is still your house, Dick, and you're always welcome, but what are you doing here?"

"I came in early to see if Chloe had left a report on her progress on the upcoming mission. I figured she stayed late, so I didn't want to wak--"

He was bluntly cut. "Mission?"

Dick looked at him. So he didn't know. "She found the third guy, Bruce," he informed. "Michael Wilson, hacker." Dick stopped when he saw Bruce's face. He didn't look happy.

Indeed, he wasn't. Without saying a thing, he left the kitchen, his pace revealing where he was headed. He didn't even say a thing to Alfred when they crossed paths at the living room.

The butler entered the kitchen and saw Dick looking in that same direction they both knew Bruce had gone in.

"Master Bruce did not look happy this morning."

"Say very upset, Alfred. He found out I had a piece of information he did not know about."

"A very vital piece of information, I assume."

"_The_ piece of information, Alfred. The name we needed."

***

Bruce stepped down the stairs and went directly to his personal set of computing systems, automatically opening his audio surveillance. By a quick sweep he forwarded the line of frequency until he got to the end of the lines showing two different voices. There were a few peaks afterwards. Intermittent. He knew Chloe had a habit of talking to herself when she worked, but the pattern looked as if she was having a dialogue, and inventing imaginary friends was something Chloe Sullivan did not do. He should know, he had been keeping eyes an ears on her ever since he managed to have her working there. As far as he was concerned, despite her whole history with superheroes and his knowledge of her over the years, Chloe Sullivan as Oracle, was still on probation. He quickly decoded the selected fragment and listened to her voice.

She had called Clark, but hadn't made a single move to inform him.

"You took a wrong step, Miss Sullivan."

Bruce took his phone and dialed.

***

He had held her until she fell asleep from exhaustion. The morning Dinah came and told him about Shiva. Then they had a quiet lunch together, and he made sure they spent the whole day at home, resting. Dinah had welcomed the gesture, and had gone along with it, knowing she wanted and needed the attention. Ollie had made sure Dinah knew she was going to get all that attention.

Dinah was healing. Slowly but steadily. He knew that.

Still, the smile he was longing for so strongly seemed to be buried too deep to come out any time soon.

They had talked, they had discussed about the mission, whenever it was ready. And they made love, like they were doing now.

Ollie's penis entered her slowly, letting both feel the length of the erected organ making contact with the warm and humid tissue. Dinah enjoyed morning sex and she thanked Ollie's increased attentiveness of lately.

Ollie smiled while seeing his lover's satisfied face.

"You really like it this way, uh, pretty bird?"

"You know I like it every way with you, Ollie, but I'll admit, sometimes being the passive one and letting you do all the work is an awesome way to start the day."

"All the work from the rubs to the licking?"

"To the slow entering, I'm-- yeah, keep doing that."

The touch of her hand on his back turned into a need of grasping. Same for her partner, with a firm hold on his rear, gently but resolutely inviting him to enter her less slowly.

"Your wish--"

"Just shut up and kiss me, I think I'm about to--ooooh, Ollie, keepgoingkeepgoing." Dinah closed her eyes as she kissed Ollie hard, almost fiercely, as she felt the coveted wave of pleasure urging him to enter her at a quicker pace now while still working with the hands on his rear end and their connected groins in an effort to make him feel the orgasm at the same time as she did. His penis went from gentle to thrust and she came.

By their breathing patterns, she'd say that he felt it just a few seconds after than hers started. Yes. Morning sex was a great way to get up in the morning.

But morning phone calls were not. Grunting, Ollie moved aside and took the cell.

"It's Bruce. What's with the Bats habit to call at unusual hours?," he protested while taking the phone. Dinah went to the bathroom to get cleaned.

"Ollie."

Bruce's voice came direct and serious. "Meeting in an hour." And he hung up.

"Yes, of course, Bruce, no problem."

Grunting again, Ollie and went to the bathroom, kissing Dinah as he turned on the shower

"What happened?" asked Dinah as she got inside the shower with him.

Ollie took the soap and a sponge and began to wash her back like he always did.

"He wants to meet. Didn't sound too happy."

"Honey, you're talking about Bruce. The day I see him happy I might not survive it."

Ollie chuckled while he started cleaning the spot behind her ears. Dinah was the laziest person on earth to wash herself properly. And he liked the job.

*******

Whenever Bruce was tense, Ollie knew he had to be ready for a confrontation. He never made things easy, and you never knew what he really sought with those challenges. It was not that he was testing his leadership, because it was clear that Bruce didn't want to be the League's chairman, but those sudden meetings, this was not precisely the first, were really annoying.

"I want Oracle shut down."

Ollie looked at him, almost dumbfounded. "Excuse me?"

"She's withholding information. I can't work with someone who doesn't inform me right after she finds critical information concerning my own investigation.

"I'm sure she had a good reason not to call you, Bruce," said Ollie defending Chloe. He knew his friend, and Chloe never did those things without a reason. "When was this?," he asked, forcing himself to give him the chance to explain.

"Last night."

"When? When you were roaming Gotham to keep it squeaky-clean? Calling heroes while they work is not Chloe's style, Bruce, don't take it personally," he added, almost wryly. He didn't like anyone prejudging Chloe just because they thought they knew they could.

"She called Clark," he stated. "I was not aware that those rules only apply to whoever she sees fit."

"Clark and Chloe go way back. She doesn't have to have a reason to call him."

"At three in the morning? I doubt it."

Ollie watched Bruce, trying to figure out this very abnormal lack of control in him. "So she called him. Do you think she wants him involved? You know we're not letting Clark anywhere near those bastards when there could be kryptonite around, Bruce," he said slightly annoyed at Bruce's perfect blank unreadable stare. "Chloe being the first to oppose. I thought you were familiar with her background." Then a question clicked and made it out of his mouth. "And how do you know she talked to Clark, anyway?"

"She works in my cave," he simply said, as if it were more than enough reason.

"You have no right to spy on her."

"She should know I was spying on her, it's part of her job."

Oh, so that was it, Ollie mused. Another test. The memory of Dinah telling him about a very pissed Barbara at some Batman monitoring explained the rest. But before Ollie could respond, a female voice sounded through an open line neither man had seen active.

"I do know, Bruce. But this was the only way I found to bring you to the Watchtower. Our time off is over, Batman, we get back to the League now."

Bruce managed to keep his neutral voice. "Is that a threat?"

"No. It's a fact," stated Chloe's voice. "I'll send you a full report on the upcoming mission as soon as I get it. I'm officially out of the Batcave. Oracle out."

Bruce didn't say a word as he turned. Ollie didn't see the smile on his face. Chloe was officially out of probation status. She had passed the last test. Barbara would truly be proud. Midway, he stopped. "Oliver."

"Yeah."

"Good choice."

*******

Chloe wondered if Dinah, Clark and the rest got this nervous when they had to play the tougher than the rest part. Right after hanging up she needed to stop and breathe deep before she headed directly to the bathroom to have a long hot shower hoping the heat and steam slowed down the blood pressure now racing through her veins.

Stomping into Superman on the living room when she got out didn't help her cause any. "Clark, you scared me!" She said. She forgot he had a key, and had been too wrapped up on her own self to hear anything.

"I said hello when I entered," he said excusing. "Sorry." He approached her. "Come, sit, you look like you need it."

"Very funny. But yeah, I need it."

Helping herself with the crutches, she sat down on her favorite sofa, noticing Clark's sight not leaving her.

"I just had a shower, Clark, I can't have anything on my face," she said to his rather amused face. "Will you tell me what's up?"

"You called yesterday."

_Oh._ "I did," she said hesitantly, very far from the day before's assurance. Maybe he thought it was premature? He couldn't, he'd been the one encouraging her, so--

"Was it serious? You coming back?," he asked tentatively.

Chloe calmed down. It wasn't doubts of the decision; it was the need to know it wasn't a bluff. That trademark sheepish look of his brought back the rest of her needed calm and control. Back to Chloe Sullivan in all possible ways. "You know I am not particularly known for raving."

Getting a huge grin from Clark Kent is not something you see everyday. At least not if you're not Lois Lane. It is one of the best things ever. This one was specially welcomed.

Chloe found herself grinning back at an empty spot, suddenly engulfed in a warm and comforting hug.

"Being hugged faster than the speed of--"

"Chlo, just shut up and let me hug you."

"He. I bet you're thinking of a certain someone who can't keep her mouth shut too."

Clark held her tighter, confirming.

"Well, I hope I get past first base with her so I can get to her hug too." He didn't let go. "I do need to get a mission running so I can risk my butt with Miss Lane, though." Finally he opened his arms and looked at her, still grinning. "You know you're not on those teams, right?," she added in a more serious warning tone.

He nodded. "Yes. But if you need any kind of backup--"

"I'll shout."

"We'll make this happen," he said before kissing her in the cheek and leaving.

"We will."

Chloe got to work.

***

Her piece on Lex took a less blurred shape by each passing day. Oracle had been a lifesaver, even if annoyingly avoiding. Now they had the dots to connect, and she was going to sew them one by one.

All those weeks of uncertainty and frustration were suddenly coming to an end. Those days of Clark and her keeping things from themselves seemed so far that they didn't even feel real anymore. And she felt that the clarity she was seeing was the proverbial light at the end of the tunnel, not the train mercilessly approaching. That, and that was the most important thing, would also mean they could finally get Chris back.

Suppressing a yawn that wasn't supposed to be there given the fact that she had slept for eight hours last night, except for that little phone call interruption, she kept working. Yes, Lex would finally bite the dust, and she'd be sure of getting first row tickets to see that.

*******

Bruce and Ollie read the names.

"Dick, Dinah and me."

"And look, she's placed you one a one man team. I'd say our girl knows you pretty well, doesn't she?," replied Ollie suppressing a snort.

"How did Dinah took the news?," he asked Ollie dismissing, as always, his attempts at humor with him.

"Good, considering," he answered surrendering.

"Enough to trust her as team leader?," he asked with no second intention behind.

"Yes. If I didn't I wouldn't send her out there, no matter the cost."

Bruce nodded. "Sending Helena with her is a wise choice, nonetheless."

"It was a personal request."

Diana entered the room, a bit surprised to find Batman at the Watchtower.

"Bruce," she said. "It's good to see you."

He merely bowed his head.

"I just come from seeing Chris."

"How is he?," asked Ollie.

"Probably glad when this is all over. It hasn't been easy to be stuck in here with us."

"Speaking of that," he said. "Do you have something important to do the next few days?"

*********


	16. Chapter 15: From Ground Zero

**Chapter 15 "From Ground Zero"**

**Disclaimer: **not mine.

**Notes: **25th Aug., night.

*********

Dinah hadn't said a word during the flight. And it had been a very long flight. A silent Dinah was a very disturbing thing. Helena had not seen that very often. And it had never been in happy occasions.

Taking a deep breath, Helena took back her passport from the counter and sped up her pace to reach Dinah, hoping very hard that they had not made a mistake in trusting her, because she honestly didn't know how to stop Black Canary if things got out of hand once they got to Shiva.

**

"It was nice of your sister to let us her plane."

"I thought it would be easier this way. We can get closer, faster."

Normally, anybody traveling inside Wonder Woman's plane would make more comments about the experience. Dick Grayson didn't. Who could blame him? Donna knew the implications of the mission they were onto. The personal implications for Dick, which, truth be told, were also forcing her to keep her warrior-amazon blood controlled by her stoic-amazon-despite-myself soul. She hurt for her friend more than she wanted to admit to him, and the prospect of vengeance was too tempting. Scarily tempting. And she had no right. "Are you ok?," she asked her friend.

Dick seemed to think his answer.

Not good.

***

Ollie hadn't received a single message from Dinah ever since she and Helena left for Japan, and that had him slightly nervous. He had gone to the Watchtower and intended to be there until they were back. As head strategist, he had his own quarters there, so he could spend days at the lunar base if needed.

Knowing the proportions of the mission and the people involved, Diana had stay there too, where they could monitor the missions. That way Kal-El would have one excuse less to expose himself to potential kryptonite danger. With Lex Luthor, one never knew.

Many people liked to gossip about Superman and Wonder Woman, the ultimate couple. Since the very beginning. One of the few things capable of getting Lois genuinely annoyed. Only a few people really understood the nature of their relationship, because very few knew the Amazons from the inside, even after Diana's diplomatic efforts towards approach. The Amazons were a fraternity, a sisterhood in the most significant meaning of the word. The fact that he didn't understand how could they live without men from his very sexual point of view, and very steamy dreams of impossible bacchanals starring his old self aside, he had a profound respect for them, only increased through Diana, Donna and Cassie. And he knew that the nature of Diana's feelings towards Clark was that same of sisterhood she felt for her fellow Amazon sisters. Hadn't he been a man, Clark, or Kal-El, as she chose to call him, would've been made an Amazon, he was sure of that. Yes, Diana had a strong sense of honor and loyalty. She would give up her life without a doubt. Ollie knew he wouldn't. He had done it once. And the consequences for the people he loved were too big a price to pay. He wasn't a true warrior, and he lacked the tragic hero side that gave Clark, Diana or Bruce, to name a few, their epic aura. He was brave, he was bold, he was damn good at what he did, and he went to great lengths to attain justice. But he loved life too much, he loved his life with Dinah too much, it had been a long crooked path to get where they were now and he wasn't about to lose it unless the whole of humanity was in mortal peril.

The fact that he had changed in many ways didn't mean he was a complete different person. And in a way, he knew he had always been a little selfish. That was another reason for the huge respect he had for Diana. She had all the qualities he lacked, even refusing to have.

"You look worried, Oliver."

That and her uncanny ability to read faces. Not that he was difficult to read though. "No word from Dinah," he confessed.

"Your concern dwells on her self control?"

He nodded. "I trust her, Diana, but she's hurting. I hate to se her in pain. And I don't think _that_ pain is easy to control." He couldn't blame her if she lost it.

Diana took a chair and sat by his side.

"I've had the honor to fight alongside Dinah on a few occasions, Oliver. She'll do fine," she said in confidence.

"Yet we all seem to be forgetting about Shiva," he said. "She's good. As good as Dinah."

"A ruthless cold-blooded bitch with on permanent PMS," suddenly said the Amazon, making Ollie look at her in slight startle, quizzically furrowing his brows.

"Your wife is very talkative, Mr Queen," she simply stated. "And as I said, I've shared a fair amount of missions with her. I was merely quoting her words," she explained, a tinge of a smile on her lips.

One of the things with Diana was that you never really knew how much was humor and how much was simple honesty. Sarcasm, irony and plain sense of humor were the pioneers to never reach the shores of her brain. Or so he'd always thought. There had to be a reason for the strong friendship she shared with Bruce, right?

Whatever it was, he welcomed the levity of her remark, and hoped that the confidence they all had in Dinah was well founded.

***

"It seems your daily outing with Wonder Woman was cut short today," said Clark referring to Troia and Nightwing borrowing her plane.

"For the best of reasons," replied a grinning Chris. He knew about he mission and the consequences if everything went as planned. His return was closer than ever.

Clark and Lois had decided not to share with the teenager Clark's episode of vulnerable skin, at least not until they knew what was going on. He had recovered part of his skin density, now a knife didn't cut through it, nor the blade bent. As for bullets, Lois had prohibited to even think of the possibility of testing.

So as Chris was concerned, everything was normal with them. He was eager to return, obviously, and, being a kid, impatience sometimes took the best of him, not that anyone blamed him. He had the right. And ever since he had known about the baby thing, he had turned into some kind of over protector, constantly asking about Lois' wellbeing. A very serious father-son talk was in the near horizon. Lois would not tolerate having two kryptonians treating her like a-- how did she picture it the other day? Oh, yes. Like a goddamned Ming jar. A talk was on the way. Definitely. And maybe now would be a great moment, since Lois was visiting later and Chris hadn't stopped making questions about her.

But before Clark thought how to approach the topic, he received a message through the League communicator. It was Chloe's.

"Chris, I'm afraid I have to go."

"Don't worry, I'll be around, Oliver told me they'd be here, so I don't think I'll be particularly bored tonight."

Clark had the feeling none of them would.

***

Chloe had worked almost non-stop the last few days. Between moving out of the cave and arranging the mission, it had been a miracle that she had also been able to talk to Bruce, Dick and the main Birds plus preparing the set of information she had ready for Clark. How she was still awake and overcoming the tempting calling of her soft and warm bed right now, was a mystery to her. No, it wasn't. She had five people heading for their destinations, five people she was tactically responsible for, who were going to put an end to a far too long nightmare, and one other person who, pen and notepad in hand –the digital era would not end the good old metaphors–, was going to uncover the ugly truth in a beautiful Daily Planet package as soon as she gave her the data missing. And Chloe knew she was very, very close to that. She hadn't told anyone, afraid of being wrong once more, but this time it seemed that she'd finally be able to decrypt the last files.

Slowly, she adjusted the prosthetic to the stump, and then took all the devices she thought she'd need. Her own particular Arena awaited in silence and she wanted to be prepared for it.

She didn't hear Clark coming.

"Chloe?"

"Hey," she said. "Glad you came, I was about to leave."

"Ollie and Diana are already there."

Chloe's room was big, so the working table she had placed there to have a small hi-tech equipment for emergencies didn't eat the space. Lying beside the closed laptop was a small drive that Chloe took and handed to him.

"The last bits of information for Lo before the big teaser," she presented.

Clark took the device and looked at her. "You're not emailing them?"

"Faster and safer via yourself, I don't want to take any chances." Clark didn't leave her eyes, not completely convinced by her business voice. He had mastered the art of non-verbal exchange with Lois, so Chloe was a piece of cake. Soon she surrendered and confessed. And Clark was glad that his _look_ worked with at least one member of the Lane clan. Not that he'd ever dare to use it with the general. "My cousin has been very persistent on talking to me lately." She didn't need to say anything else. Clark understood and placed the object in his belt.

"I'll get it to her right away."

"It has all three profiles of Barbara's killers and their links to Lex, plus their activities over the last six months."

"Should I tell her anything else?"

"There's still one thing missing regarding the labs," she said, mind on those decrypting files. "She knows it, so she'll know to wait before publishing anything, and I'm sure you keep her updated with the mission going live tonight."

Clark nodded. "Have you heard from any of them? Ollie seemed a bit concerned."

"No. The monitoring equipment is already at the Clocktower, I'm not contacting any of them until I get there."

Clark hadn't really listened the last part of her sentence. A single word prevented him to. "Clocktower?"

Chloe gave a solemn nod. "It is where it all started, Clark. It is where it all should end."

*******

"Dick. Please, say something."

"I don't know, Donna," was his cryptic answer. Then he remained silent, and Donna waited patiently, hoping, nervous, to get something else. He did talk a while later. "I don't know how I feel." When he raised his sight, it was met by hers. "I've been waiting for this, for this moment to come, long and hard. And now that it's real and in the present tense, I'm trying to deal with it and I just don't."

"Like you can't assume it's true. As if you were watching it from outside, peeking through a window unsure to how the door opens."

Donna wasn't asking, Dick realized. She knew perfectly well what he was talking about. "I'm afraid I'll lose control, Donna. And I don't want to," he said. And he also realized those words were not platitudes, but truly meaningful. He had told them to Chloe two days ago. That night he had patrolled a few Gotham districts, hoping to find no trouble. The sudden knowledge that they would soon be on a mission to get the people responsible for Babs' death had brought back a jolt of rage he'd feared he would not control. Now, he was on a plane, hours away from the hacker who had given free entrance to the assassins. Half a second. It was all it took. He had given way to a man and a woman who had killed his life, his future as he was dreaming it. And he was going to be face to face with him. And the words said to Chloe were being repeated in front of Donna. And amid all the inner confusion, he knew, that made sense. And it was good. How weird.

"I'll be there, Dick."

He smiled. "I know."

Silence.

"This won't take the pain away."

He nodded. "No." Only time and sheer will would lessen it. "I guess we're pros on that one, right?," he said getting a chuckle from Donna.

"We could retire and live the rest of our lives imparting conferences about the uselessness of vengeance."

"Around the globe."

Donna took his hand and squeezed it gently, receiving the same gesture in return. "I'm proud of you, Dick. I don't know if you can see why right now, but--"

He stopped her with another hand squeeze and smiled. "I know, Donna. Somehow I do know."

Yes. It made sense. And it was good.

***

Clark found the apartment silent. Strange though, because unless she was following an unexpected lead or had a last minute meeting with a source, Lois had told him she'd be home. Before he focused his hearing on her heartbeat, she came into view.

"Hey, Smallville."

Lois greeted him with the same sleepy look she usually had in the mornings but never in the evening. "Lois, you look beat," he observed.

"I know. I was exhausted, and I wanted to rest before visiting Chris, so I had a quick nap. Still not awake."

Clark embraced her. "You look like you could use a walk," he said as he gently held her while hovering.

Lois looked down and smiled.

"You know? That would do some good indeed."

Making sure they were safe from indiscreet eyes, Clark opened the window and flew out, ascending slowly while keeping Lois warm with his own heat. The evening was tranquil and beautiful, and he wanted a moment with her.

"Listen, would you mind if I told Chris you're not visiting tonight?," he asked.

Lois raised an eyebrow. "In fact I would. You know that, Smallville. What's going on?"

Clark took from his belt her the drive Chloe had given him and showed it to Lois, handing it to her. "I was given this by Oracle," he said. Lois took the small device and looked at him. "It has profiles, activities, links to Lex--" Clark didn't have time to finish.

"Back inside, Clark."

Clark obeyed, and got both inside, following Lois towards the living room, were Lois had her laptop. As soon as the portable computer was off line, she inserted the memory stick, impatiently waiting until the files opened.

"She asked me to tell you to wait before publishing anything until she got the last piece of information."

"You mean this is not everything?," she asked with eyes wide open. "Clark, I've got more than enough to bury Lex under all his dirt for years!," she exclaimed at all the files opening before her eyes.

"The mission to get them is already running as we speak, hon, but before the League approaches Lex it will be a little longer. And if Oracle wants to wait before having everything, I guess whatever it is will be big.

"That's a given," she mused to herself. Then she stooped her thoughts. "Clark, you're not on the mission, right?"

"No. It's unlikely there will be any kryptonite involved, but Ollie didn't want to take any chances. Diana's on call, so are Wally and Bart, in case there's a high speed needed emergency."

"That's a heavy back up team there."

"It is a three time-zone covering mission. You should see the shadow team on Lex," he added, thinking about Hal, Vic and Kory. "But I would like to be around, just in case. And from the looks of your upcoming work," he said glancing at the screen, "seems we won't be able to see each other that much."

Lois gave him _that _look.

"I'll keep you posted."

_The_ look continued.

"I'll come every couple of hours to inform you personally.

_The_ look receded. "Are you calling J'onn?"

He nodded. "He will be handling my absence, if that's ok with you."

Ok with her? The man had saved Clark's life more than once, including the time he was shot by a drugged Ollie at the cost of his own powers, abilities he would not recover until more than a year later. Lois was forever grateful for him. "Of course I don't mind. Give Chris a hug from me, ok?"

Clark smiled. "He'll be mad at me for keeping you here, you know?"

The comment made Lois smirk with a hint of pride. "That's my boy."

"Yeah, I shudder to think about our--" he stopped. "...um...I meant, um..." Clark felt completely stupid about that sudden remark. Where it had come from, he didn't know, but he mentally scolded himself for being such a brute and insensit-- Wait a second. Lois was smiling. Truly smiling.

"You are the most amazing person there is in this planet, Smallville. I love you," she suddenly said. Before he reacted her tongue in his mouth was showing him that what he had seen and heard was real. Closing his eyes he kissed her back. "And yes, our child will take after mommy. Do shudder, Smallville, he or she will be a handful."

***

"You seem tired, Miss Sullivan."

"It doesn't really matter now, Alfred," she said.

"I made sure the place is comfortable enough for you. I know it might not be the most appropriate thing to do or say, but if your prosthetic starts hurting too much, I have arranged a comfortable wheelchair so you can make proper use of it."

Inappropriate was not the word. But she knew why the caution. "You shouldn't have, Alfred," she said politely.

"I'm afraid I cannot take the credit for that, Miss Sullivan. It was master Bruce's idea. He told me that when you worked for long hours your discomfort grew into pain."

Chloe had to admit to herself that she didn't expect that. And thinking a little deeper, she scolded herself for letting her legit personal reserves cloud a full judgment of the man behind the cowl.

"Sometimes it is not the stump what hurts," she admitted while the car came to a stop.

"Phantom pain?"

She nodded. "And the medicines don't help in the focusing department," she explained, "so I don't use them while I'm working."

Alfred nodded silently in understanding, and following his natural manner, got out of the car and opened her door before she realized what he was doing. "Let me help you with the bags, Miss Sullivan."

Chloe gave him two bags and took the laptop and her clutches –just in case, she didn't think she'd be able to use a wheelchair there, and now she was glad she brought them. Following Alfred, she walked towards the entrance, not before directing her sight upwards, to the huge clock crowning the tower standing before her.

Their own Ground Zero.

*****

**Notes: **Ollie selfish? A hero selfish? I think by now it's very clear that I generally like flawed characters and that I tend to write close to canon. Ollie Queen, SV or comic, is very far from being perfect, and I like him that way. This Ollie comes mainly from SV, but as you know, in order to build his past-to-present with Dinah, I've taken events from the comics, adapting them to this little arc of mine. Whether he is or not adamant to give up his life in real comics, I don't know, but it's a little flaw that appeared in the spur of the moment as I was writing the paragraph about his thoughts on Diana and the rest. Despite this, I think that the fact that he is able to see and accept his own faults/defects and respect their counterpart virtues in the rest is a very valuable virtue. Of course, you can disagree. :)


	17. Chapter 16: Open sores unatended

**Chapter 16 "Open sores unattended"**

**Disclaimer: **not mine.

**Warning: **Shiva is very, very mean; not that it wasn't hinted before, but she provokes some angst here. Despite this, I enjoyed writing all the Helena/Dinah moments in this chapter. Hope you like them too.

**Notes: **this chapter takes place between 25th-26th Aug.

*****

The teams were on the move and Oracle was already heading tactical assistance. Ollie knew that much. "I hate sitting on my butt doing nothing," he said, a hint of frustration in his voice.

Diana was casually leaning on a wall from where she saw the screens. Chairs made her restless, she preferred to stand, but she knew that pacing around would get on Ollie's nerves. "You could've gone with them, why didn't you?," she asked in honest curiosity.

"It didn't feel right," he simply said. "It would've been intruding."

"But Dinah would've understood. No questions asked there."

He nodded. "And Helena probably too," he confirmed. "That doesn't make it right though." Ollie took sight of Diana, standing there silently, probably not understanding why would he step aside but at the same time feeling he had a reason to. "Barbara was more than a friend to them, Diana. She was family." He paused. "It was their thing, their group."

"Like a sisterhood?," asked the Amazon princess going into familiar territory that would make her understand better.

"Sort of, I guess. It was a part of them, of who they were." Ollie turned and looked at her, smiling. "And believe me, it made them better."

"So you feel--no. You _believe_ this is something they want to do by themselves."

He pondered his answer. "I don't know if want, Diana. But they sure need it. There's something about being part of the Birds," he tried to explain. "It unites them. When Barda was killed..."

Diana looked down momentarily, sadness crossing her face at the thought of the fallen warrior from Apokolips.

"...Helena and Zinda went off the radar for a short while. They needed to mourn together. Privately. Barda came around when Dinah was momentarily out of the group. She also became family."

"I know of Dinah's personal history with this Lady Shiva, Oliver, but--"

"It is not just that. She also worked with them. Even if forced, even if for a short time, Diana. She was a Bird. And Dinah was the one introducing her inside. I cannot expect to be welcomed there, even if they understand. They need to do it themselves."

***

"Strange place to hide."

"Overpopulated city in Latin America? I don't think it is such a bad idea, Donna," said Dick.

"I still don't get these suburbs. It is a dump. If there's heavy rain their houses will flood."

"People don't have jobs in the country. Rural dwellers move to the city, they don't find a job either, they build their houses in non-habitable areas. The government will not demolish them, neither they'll be forced to provide them with the minimum required necessities. It's not something they choose, Donna," he said as they hovered over the crowded buildings at a safe distance.

"I am aware of the hypertrophic growth of cities in this half of the continent and the poverty derived from it, Dick. I just don't understand it. I think it is unfair."

Donna's words took Dick's thoughts momentarily away from the mission, back in some unexpected warm thoughts. "Babs was constantly making those questions to herself," he mused. When he realized Donna had heard him, he made sure he was smiling, so she wouldn't worry. Donna worried too much. "She always tried to do something," he added.

"That was one of the reasons to create the Birds, wasn't it?"

"Not solving the socio-economical problems of the world, but change what she could for the better, yes. But you know what? There were always people like Luthor, and villains like the ones we fought together in the Titans, like the ones we still fight, who don't let us do more."

Then he wished he could've kept the warm memories and not the uneasy feeling he was getting on the pit of his stomach. The rage was not as deeply buried as he'd thought.

"I understand, Dick, I was just--"

"I know. I'm just...I don't want to talk about this now, Donna, it's taking me to places I don't want to go."

Donna failed to understand. Probably at the worst moment, but she had to ask, they were about to go on a delicate mission where nothing could go wrong. "Dick," she said gently turning his face to face her. "Tell me."

He closed his eyes for a second and explained. "Those bastards killed Babs, Donna."

"Yeah," she said quietly.

"I need to focus on this, not in questions without answers. I don't think I--"

Donna silenced him with her fingers on his mouth giving him a somewhat forced reassuring smile. "Let's take this guy, then."

Dick nodded. With no further need to say anything, he took the backpacks while Donna maneuvered the plane leaving it in suspension and took him in her arms to fly down towards the streets of Santiago.

***

Dinah loved Japan. From the very first time she landed. The synergy of two diametrically opposed cultures, the purity of their traditions and the mighty capitalism, the learning of eclecticism not being such a bad thing, learning to judge with all her eyes open. The land...It was a little bit of everything. She would travel to Tokyo at least once a year, just to get lost in it before traveling North to enjoy the contrast of the rural countryside outside Hokkaido.

But tonight was different. Painfully different. She didn't want to be there. The sounds, the light, the smell, they were unreal, they didn't exist. Her mind was set on her target, and damned her if she failed. She noticed her companion silently trying to keep up with her fast pace while she checked the small PDA.

"Oracle sent me the coordinates," she said.

Helena breathed inwardly at the neutral tone of her voice. She hated it. She hated that they were in that situation. She hated to see Dinah in that situation. "Are we far?," she asked trying to keep a casual voice. Dinah merely gave her the device. "Seems to be the northern end of the town," she observed.

"Helena, Tokyo is giant. That doesn't say a lot. And yes, we're far."

Far wasn't good. "But you do know we're just two blocks from the bike, right?"

Dinah nodded, speeding up the pace.

"I'm guessing you'll be the one driving?"

"Bet your ass I will."

***

Lois took the phone quickly. "You're calling me from the outer space?," she asked mockingly.

She heard a chuckle. "I'm in France. Little emergency."

"Thank God the League manages your phone accounts, I don't think any person in the world could explain your monthly international calls schedule. We'd be facing very serious compromising questions. But, hey, as you're there, you could bring us some--"

"Not enough time difference, hon. Stores are closed."

"Oh."

"I could return later, though."

She chuckled, then smiled. "I'd rather have you in here on your spare time."

"Me too. So, how's everything?"

"Working smoothly, placing everything together. You?"

"Missions are going as planned, the three teams are supposed to be reaching their destination, Ch--" He stopped abruptly, his heart pounding out of his chest. He'd been too close.

"Clark?"

"Yes?," he managed to say, now terrified of opening his big mouth.

"You were saying?"

"Chris," he said, grateful that both their names started with the same letter.

"What about him, is something wrong?," she asked suddenly concerned.

"No, no, he's fine," he promptly added, cursing himself for his clumsiness. "He asked about you. He was sad you couldn't go see him." At least that wasn't a lie.

"Yeah, me too."

"Anyway, I'll head back to the Watchtower, I'll go home as soon as I can. Love you."

"You too. Take care."

Lois hung up and continued her work, thankful of her ability to focus. Given her life, if she lacked that skill, she'd be toast as a reporter.

***

Helena had to literally run to open the gate with the keys before Dinah broke through them.

"Chill out, will you? I have the keys, there's no need to go all Terminator on the gate. Save your strength," she added, desperate for some kind of reaction from Dinah. She was starting to get seriously worried.

Dinah said nothing, just let Helena open the gate of the garage and get inside. "Which one?," she asked looking at the set of bikes standing there.

Helena pushed the tiny bottom of the key and both looked to their left at the beep sound and intermittent orange light revealed a black 500 cc Kawasaki waiting for them. Very fitting. But Helena had no second to lose in musing, for Dinah had snatched the keys from her hand and was already sitting on it.

"Hey!" Helena ran once more, this time intending to make Dinah look at her, by standing still right in front of the wheel. "Dinah, look at me," she commanded. Miraculously, the blonde raised her gaze to meet hers. "I made you promise me I could trust you. Ollie told me I could trust you, but you've been acting as if this is your own private suicide mission. Will you stop it with the attitude? It's making me nuts!"

Dinah stared back at her, face unreadable.

Helena sighed, and quieted her tone again. "And the silence isn't helping any, just so you know. I am not moving until you come clean and clear, Canary, so don't make me kick your ass."

Dinah kept her stance and then leaned forward, getting closer to Helena's face. "You'd kiss the floor even before you reached a hair, Bertinelli."

_A tinge of a smile making its way through?_ Helena held her breath before talking back. Praying she was right following her guts with this. "I'd be behind you before you even realized, Canary." Then she turned her serious face into a very intended sly grin. "You should see my new back flips."

"Bluffer."

"Jerk."

Helena couldn't recall being that happy about a chuckle, and before Dinah could react, she was indeed behind her, hugging her missed friend as tight as she could. Dinah held the hands comforting her. "I'm sorry, sweetie."

"I don't mind the jerk part as long as I know what's causing it, Dinah. I just don't like not knowing. And you can get really scary when you want to. That 'I am not taking any prisoners' attitude of yours gives me the goose bumps, girl. In a very bad kind of way."

Dinah was silent for a few seconds.

"I'm using my rage to focus, Helena, and," she sighed. "I guess I focused too much." Without letting go of her hand, Dinah turned so she could look at Helena. "I made you and Ollie a promise and I'm keeping it." Helena squeezed her hand. Dinah let out a tired sigh. "I don't think Babs would approve otherwise," she quietly admitted as she turned back to look at the open gates.

Helena placed her chin on Dinah's shoulder. "I do."

Her statement startled Dinah. Helena hadn't even flinched.

"If it had been you the one killed," she continued in the same confusing casual tone, "Babs would have ripped the bitch's heart out with her bare hands."

"Helena..." Dinah looked at her with a frown, receiving a surprised expression in return.

"What? You think she wouldn't? That'd be a first, Lance. Of all people _you_ did know the original Batgirl."

"She kicked ass alright, Helena, but that is not what you're saying," she clarified.

"Nope. I knew how much she cared...how much she loved you. You know? I don't think she would have gotten over your death. I think Shiva would have earned a one-way ticket to first position on her own McCarthy's black list of bastards, leaving The Joker far behind. I think the damned Lady S. should be thankful that she killed the right person."

"Is this all clairvoyance of yours supposed to make me feel any better? Because I am more confused now than three minutes ago," said a disheartened Dinah.

"No." Helena placed one hand on her chin and another on her shoulder, and made sure her next words came out crystal clear. "This is my very clumsy way of saying how much I admire you, of saying how much Babs loved you and praised her friendship with you and of saying how proud she'd be feeling right now that her best friend is doing the right thing and helping the rest of us in the process."

Dinah didn't know what to say. Helena's words had caught her unaware. She was a very honest person, but such a display of emotional raw honesty was not something you saw everyday. Granted they were not in a normal situation, not even for being a mission. But still it was quite something.

Then she saw a very familiar smirk. One that she was particularly fond of. "But I'll be glad if you kick her ass till it turns as purple as my costume."

For the first time since she had been told about Shiva, Dinah truly smiled.

***

Bruce walked the streets of the old city of Stockholm, slowly emptying itself of tourists. He kept looking at the bronze gargoyle erected almost at the top of the church. Letting aside thoughts of free wandering over the top of those buildings, he patiently awaited for the call. Right on time, his cell rang.

"He's on the Southern island, Bruce. There is a walk, bordering the northwest coast, Monteliusvägen; that'll be your exit point, I've sent you the coordinates."

"I'll wait for your signal."

Bruce checked his PDA. Chloe had sent the data to the small submarine he would use to get out of the city unnoticed, taking advantage of the Swedish capital's geographical characteristic, making it a compound of several islands surrounded by water. He'd take Zsasz out before the vicious killer even knew what hit him. Before he himself had time to react violently on him for having killed Barbara.

***

"So Mom is not coming because she's writing?"

"Yes."

"But she's fine, right?," he asked for the third time.

"Why wouldn't she, Chris?"

"I don't know," he answered sheepishly. "But you two are so focused on making me not worry about anything that you'd probably hide it if something was wrong, and I want to know if--"

Chris was cut, finding Clark kneeling in front of him, hands on his shoulders. "Chris. Lois is ok. Nothing's wrong with her. And maybe we should have a talk about you and your own over protectiveness towards Lois."

"Why? Isn't it..." he hesitated a second, and spoke again with tiny, shy mouth. "Is it not human?"

Was he revealing far too much? He was hiding some truths to keep them from harm, that was what Clark did sometimes, was he implying it was not good? He didn't want them to lie to him but at the same time he understood, because he was doing it himself. Was Clark questioning that now? Was it something bad then? Was he being wrong about all this?

Suddenly Chris felt very confused and lost, and silently pleaded Clark to tell him he wasn't, that it was right to protect the ones you loved.

Clark couldn't help the chuckle, despite the slight sudden worry he saw in Chris' face. "It is very human, Chris. And it is fine to protect the people you care about." He felt the relief in the boy's shoulders. "It is just that Lois doesn't do over protection. It doesn't become her, she doesn't like it."

"Not even from us?," asked Chris innocently, making Clark chuckle again.

"Specially not from us," he remarked. "Because she's made sure that we know her, and expects us to respect that."

"But you don't respect that, do you?," he asked, again, in the most innocent of tones.

Clark smiled. "I try to get away with it as much as possible."

Chris arched an eyebrow. "Does it work?"

"Not really."

He frowned understanding. "I see."

Clark mused at the internal debate Chris seemed to be having with himself. Getting to know this newly found boy was something he was truly looking forward to doing.

"Chris, you know she wanted to come, right?"

Chris looked back and nodded, serious. "Yes. She'd never stop visiting unless she had a good reason. That's why I wanted to make sure she was alright."

"This story is really important. What's happening tonight is really important."

"I know." He grinned. "It'll probably allow me to come back."

And Clark smiled. "Not just you, son." Smiled with the most honest and happy of smiles. "I think it is time you and I have a talk, Chris."

"About what?"

"About a woman named Chloe."

***

Blood cannot boil unless you are Superman and you find yourself dangerously close to something called green kryptonite. At least that's how Clark had described it to her. As if his blood boiled inside his body wanting to get out.

Dinah made a mental note to tell him about the metaphorical way of blood boiling; very painful too. Wanting to jump right out of her body and erase that defying smirk from the Asian woman's face.

"I have killed for less, Dinah," she added to insult, intentionally pouring salt on the open wound.

Helena watched the scene in silence, feeling invisible, at a safe distance, not too sure from exactly who, Dinah or Shiva, or both. She doubted there was a single cell relaxed on Dinah's body.

"I've killed for pleasure."

Shiva was not crazy, Helena mused. She was suicidal.

"You knew I'd eventually come after you, Shiva. And very pissed off."

"I was banking on it."

Definitely suicidal.

"You know I'm always up for a good fight, Dinah. Not many people satisfy my needs on that department." Shiva paused again. "So. Here we are now."

"Did you enjoy it?"

Shiva paused at every question coming from Dinah, Helena reflected. As if thinking how could she hurt her more. And Dinah seemed to be doing a brilliant job in pleasing her.

"I enjoyed fighting her. Trying to anticipate her moves, to avoid her punches. She has--" she smirked, "sorry, _had_ a really mean jab."

How could Dinah stay still, was a mystery to Helena, but if Dinah didn't move, neither would she. She had a promise to keep too.

Shiva kept talking, somehow sensing Helena was not the threat at the moment, and, knowing very well of Dinah's skills, calculating her distance from her opponent. "It was a challenge, and you know I'm always up for them," she said smirking. "I could not leave any marks on her body. And she knew how to put up a fight. So yes, Dinah, I relished it." Visibly enjoying Dinah's pain, she turned slightly, clearing a spot of her neck from hair. "She gave me this scar." She turned to face Dinah and Helena again. Both faces set on her. Although she could see Helena was slightly more focused on Dinah than on herself. Strange. "I wear it with pride." Dinah's fists clenched. "Barbara was a formidable opponent. I won't apologize if that's what you're expecting."

"You didn't have to kill her."

"Oh, but I didn't actually killed her," she said as if she were playing with them.

"You served her cold to Zsasz, Shiva, knowing what he'd do, don't even try to pull the ranks here, because you know Zsasz was more of a pawn than you."

Shiva smiled. She was enjoying this in all its glory. The rage boiling inside Dinah, probably agonizing in order to maintain some self-control. She was relishing every delicious second of it. "Cold?" She shook her head. "You see, that's were you're wrong. She was very much conscious and aware when he plunged the knife inside. You know, you never wanted to learn the pressure point techniques to disable your enemy. Well, let me tell you, Dinah, they came in real handy with your dear friend. If we were not in a hurry I would've asked her how it felt to loose the feeling of her arms too."

Dinah swallowed the blood. She'd bitten the insides of her cheeks in a desperate need to control and conceal her emotions...and herself. Shiva was coldly calculating the distance between them while she moved, as so was she. Not an inch closer than necessary to be safe. It seemed clear by now that she didn't care for anything, so the only way of letting her guard slightly down was going through this hell. Feeding her with the pleasure of martyring her hoping she'd take the bait and give her a clear spot.

Finally Dinah held her breath and braced herself as she shot a quick glance to Helena, hoping she did too, because she knew her next three words were going to open such a wound in both friends that they would bear the scar for the rest of their lives.

_Forgive me, Helena._

"She was pregnant."

Dinah met Shiva's eyes. She could always anticipate her movements from her eyes. It was her flaw, and this had to be the moment. Shiva's evil smirk reached her eyes.

"I know. She begged."

And Dinah saw the spot. Half an inch closer, less than a second to move. Wait was over.

Shiva had been right, Helena was more focused on Dinah, and not even that way could she anticipate the sudden blow directed right towards her face.

*****

**Notes: **Barda is another favorite, and in the few BoP issues she appeared in, she earned a very well deserved comic space. Helena and Zinda going off the radar is a reference to an alcoholic hangout they have after their friend's funeral.

My total geek moment during my holidays in Stockholm was in Gamla Stan (the Old City). The German Church has some very cool gargoyles on top. I kept seeing Batman up there.

The more I write Dinah, the more I like her. The last part is cruel, the angst flowed during the edit/rewrite of the chapter, but I'm rather proud of Dinah's actions and how she ended up exposing her and Helena to obvious emotional pain knowing it was the only way to get closer to Shiva. Attagirl.

I could get cocky and say the pressure point technique idea came from _Kill Bill_, but it was my _Xena_-fan memory suggesting I used it, and I like to give the credit to who deserves the credit (besides, Tarantino's a public XWP fan. And it all probably comes from Hong Kong films as the ultimate source).


	18. Chapter 17: The Unseen Light

**Chapter 17 "_The Unseen Light_"**

**Disclaimer: **not mine.

*****

_"But all was accepted on some unspoken understanding that they –the mama and her husband– were allowing her to put herself at risk along them, the only ones who had reason to. Perhaps the woman had survived so much in her life that she couldn't really believe in the danger they couldn't say came only from a cough, from a person's shit, from pus or blood. Something he gave off, some kind of light you couldn't see" _Nadine Gordimer, "Get a Life"

*****

Chloe closed her eyes and breathed. She needed to focus. She needed all her brain batteries functioning; she didn't have the luxury of less. And she couldn't and wouldn't expect less from herself.

She had the teams scattered in three corners of the world, set to get a psycho killer, a well-trained hacker and a woman far more dangerous than she thought it was possible. _Damn you, Lex. You did a good job in picking your pawns_.

She had her cousin, one of the best reporters in North America, working as hard as her –that she just knew– to have the final ribbon on Lex's fall ready to be tied, hopefully like a noose around his neck with a firm grip. Seeing him behind bars would be worth more than a thousand Pulitzers for her. For all of them.

There was no place for failure, because there was too much at stake for everyone. The success of the missions and its implications went far beyond catching the bad guys. This time it was much more.

It was a chance at closure. For Dick. For Dinah. For Barbara's father.

And it was a chance at life. Putting an end to a nightmare; returning back to life. It was, for the second time in her life, leaving everything behind, but this time with all the bad on the rearview mirror, not a single grim sensation ahead. She could finally come home, and it all depended on them doing the job, a job she was coordinating.

Failure was not an option.

Leaning back on her chair, Chloe looked at her surroundings. It left a familiar feeling on her; phantom pain. But she knew it was the place where it all had to happen. Where it all had to end. The Clocktower was being used one last time before finally closing the curtain.

_And so we come full circle, Babs_.

All systems working silently, like a well-oiled machine, gave Chloe a sense of control and security plus a little faith in herself that she welcomed with open arms.

And then, a single tiny sound stopping everything.

A beep. A sound making Chloe hold her breath.

Two words displaying on the screen.

Decryption complete.

There are times when something so important happens, that the world stops turning around you. You hear nothing. You see nothing. You feel nothing. And all your senses merge into one, prey of that shuttering event.

Two words.

Somewhere in her mind Chloe found the command moving her hand towards the off-line laptop she was using for the decryption, and frantic fingers danced over the keyboard in order to put everything together. It was like finding the Rosetta stone and knowing what she could read with it. No tricks this time, no firewalls. She blinked twice to make sure she wasn't wrong. And she wasn't. The files were there, the commands worked, no error message appeared, the whole computer was obeying her at last.

Now she knew the files were videos that Barbara had fragmented. But the merge was just a question of time, not a security measure, so she put the trusty computer, her own little sidekick, at work, and took her comm-link with renewed determination. She'd just received a signal from Chile.

"Nightwing, Troia, report."

"We are in position, Oracle," said Donna.

"Did you get visual confirmation?," she asked. "We can't make a move unless we're a hundred and ten percent sure he is there. He could set off any alarm and warn Luthor before we get him."

Donna and Dick were dressed as civilians, each one with a photography backpack, on a very crowded street, just in front of a random flat building. Donna didn't really see a way of knowing if the hacker was home without causing direct exposure. Dick was by her side. He had been silent, yet apparently calmed, emotions, whatever they were, remarkably at bay. She wasn't so sure it would go as smoothly if suddenly a woman started flying in the middle of the street. She didn't really want to leave Dick behind. So she asked.

"Oracle, I don't really see a way of doing this without...er...arising some...direct exposure," she whispered.

Chloe frowned. She had predicted that contingency, she had handed Dick the equipment herself. "Aren't you posing as photographers?," she asked.

Donna glanced at Dick, who seemed to get out of some trance. "I'm sorry, my fault," he suddenly said as he took his backpack and kneeled to open it.

Chloe had also set a b-channel so she could speak privately to each one of them without the other team member listening. She'd been specifically thinking of Dick and Dinah. "Troia, is he ok?," she asked carefully.

Donna looked at Dick, focused on mounting some photo lens on the body of his camera with his usual fluid movements. "Yeah," she responded. "It's ok."

Chloe knew it was no moment for stalling or worrying. Donna was well aware of the importance of performing flawlessly, so if she said Dick was ok, she would have to trust her completely. "Ok." She turned back to their team channel. "I hope you like your new telephoto lens, Troia," she said smiling.

"My t--?"

Oh, yes, she loved those Oracle moments. "It fits in your personal camera, and right now it's connected with my computer. Whatever you see, I'll see." _Plus a little extra my eyes only_.

Donna let her inner photographer awe about the lens for a few seconds, and before giving it its first strategic use, she found Dick's pleased gaze, touched by a slight smile.

"Guilty," he confessed.

Chloe sensed the interaction going on in between the two friends and smiled too. "After the mission take it to Cyborg. He'll disconnect it and it'll work as a normal lens. I understand you wanted one."

Mouthing a silent 'thank you' to Dick, she took the precious object and acted as if she were taking pictures of the building. This time Dick was the one talking, much to Chloe's and Donna's relief.

"You should be receiving now, just tell us where to focus."

Chloe indeed, received the images. "Focus on the left window."

Donna did. "I see nothing."

Chloe smirked. She just couldn't help it. She liked this too much. "Don't worry, I do."

"I won't even ask."

"The camera has a software that--"

"Really, I don't want to know," said Donna. "I wouldn't understand it," she said while she kept seeing the wall through her eyes, hearing chuckles from the other end of the line. "I am an Amazon warrior. I fight. I'm not a computer whiz," she whispered, only increasing the chuckles, now in Dolby surround having Dick chuckling too.

"I can fly," she said in defense.

Chuckling turned into two sound snorts. Donna simply rolled her eyes and waited for Oracle's next instructions. At least Dick seemed relaxed.

Soon, Oracle's serious voice started giving commands.

"He's inside working."

Dick frowned. "That doesn't give us a big margin," he said.

"Get to the first positions. Luckily, he'll be too busy trying to fix the sudden Internet meltdown he's having in three minutes to notice you."

"Three minutes?"

"That enough window for you to get inside?"

Dick and Donna looked at each other and shared a smile. "More than enough. Approach?"

"Knock him out, get his toys and come back. Think you can do it quickly?," she asked.

"Once we have him, is there a problem with exposure?," asked Donna.

"No. Perimeter's clear."

Donna smirked. "Then don't worry, Oracle, we'll be out of there before you bring that Internet of yours back. Oh, and Oracle?," she asked before Chloe could add a single chuckle to the list.

"Tell me." Chloe was checking her laptop's progress with the videos and trying to contact the other two teams.

"I've been after a 50 mm fix lens for a while now."

"I'm not quite sure such optic can slip into a mission profile that easily," she said.

"Well, I had to try."

"Oracle."

The male voice interrupted the light mood.

"Troia, Oracle out. Call if you need me."

Chloe turned all her concentration on Bruce. "Oracle here," she said.

"I have him."

_What? _"You--"

"I have him," he merely repeated. Returning to Gotham now."

Why should she be surprised? It was Batman. He did things his way and she would have to learn to respect that, because he was who he was. And once more she had to remind herself that despite everything, he was good. The best, indeed.

"Any word on the rest?," he asked.

"Nightwing and Troia will report any minute. Still nothing from Japan, though."

"Canary will handle it."

Chloe then decided to tell him. "Batman. There's one thing more."

"I'm about to go out of range, Oracle, is it important?"

"I decrypted the last files. Seems some sort of video feed."

Silence filled her ears for a few seconds.

"Have you seen it?"

"Not yet. It is taking its time to open."

"We'll talk when I get back. Batman out."

She closed her channel with Bruce and tried to contact Dinah, hoping Bruce was right about her being trusted.

"Canary, Huntress, report."

Chloe waited. She received a strange set of noises she couldn't really identify, but no trace of Dinah's voice.

***

Dinah had forgotten she was wearing the communication device, but the second she heard a voice she shoved it away from her ear with the same hand she used to block the powerful kick a battered but very alert Shiva sent her. No voices. She needed all her focus to defeat her opponent. It had all started with a jump at the first opportunity, the single time Shiva let herself carried away by the pleasure Dinah herself offered to hurt her deep inside and got a little closer than she should have, inside Dinah's action range. Dinah knew she wouldn't take her from a single blow, but starting with the offense was her only chance with Shiva. As for her words... she just hoped they gave her enough strength to get over the physical pain she was getting by each time she got hit by her former ally.

She had lost track of time, of the blows she'd taken, of the blows she'd successfully sent into her opponent's body, but she would not stop until Shiva was unconscious on the ground. Damned her if she was going to let her win. No. Shiva was going to face this crime even if it cost Dinah her life.

Helena had taken all her will to remain out of the fight. Sheer will. She had told herself she'd be honoring Dinah and Babs. Somehow. Where she came from, honor was a very important thing and she respected it above everything. And damned her, but Dinah had played her like a violin there. And as much as she hated it, she knew she had to grant her that wish. So she'd back off. For the moment. But God be damned if Dinah thought for a single minute that she would let her die.

Dinah's movement throwing the device away was quick, almost invisible. By years of fighting alongside the woman, Helena sensed why she'd done it, so not keeping her eyes off of her friend, in case she was needed, she took the small communication link, now fully understanding why she had removed it. Dinah had known that at some point she'd want to get rid of it.

Helena put the device on, there was no point in worrying Oracle. Whoever Oracle was now. Dinah seemed to respect her, so she would too.

"Canary, please, report," came a worried voice.

"This is Huntress."

"Huntress, where were you? Where is she? How come none of you was responding?"

Ok, too many questions and a far too important fight there. She tried to be as clear and quick as possible. "I forgot mine, stupid, I know, yell at me later; Canary threw hers when you contacted her, she needed the focus."

"Is she ok?"

"She's fighting Shiva, that's never ok," she said intently omitting the aching foreplay game Dinah had been forced to put in order to start the fight. Helena suddenly winced at the boot reaching Dinah's stomach. And by her friend's face, it looked like broken ribs. She pondered whether she should intervene or not, but felt that the last thing she wanted to do right now was reporting a stranger about this. "You know Dinah, right?," she asked suspecting the truth.

"Yes," came the voice timidly.

"Then trust us, Oracle whoever you are. We'll call you when we're--she's done. Helena out."

The device met the ground for a second time.

***

"Great. Just great."

After being cut by Huntress in pure Oracle style, Chloe took one breath and directed herself towards the laptop. Her stump hurt and for a second her gaze turned into the wheelchair Alfred had readied as a precaution. Then she thought where she was. And why she was there. And she erased the thought from her mind. She also tried not to think about Dinah. She was a great fighter. And she was hurting. And she was probably taking all of that hurt away once and for all, getting it where it deserved to be, all over one of her best friend's killers.

_Give her all you got, girl. She deserves it. But please, don't take too much yourself._

The next call was very welcome, letting her mind rest from concern she couldn't prevent.

"Oracle, Nightwing."

"Good news, I'm hoping."

"Yeah," he said. "We got him. Already on our way."

"Good job, guys."

"You too. Nightwing out."

Chloe smiled. Only one to go. And now to the moment she'd been awaiting for. And dreading to confront. The videos were ready to be played.

***

Ollie only half-smiled, knowing about the success of Dick and Bruce: still no word from Dinah, and Chloe had been reluctant to tell him anything other than her knowing the two women had located Shiva. Diana had reassured him that Dinah would bring Shiva back, nevertheless she didn't leave the Tower, even if the rest of backup had been relieved from duty. Privately, Ollie hoped she did it as an act of friendship than one of worry. All in motion, the shadow team assigned on Lex was already in place, meaning he would be permanently watched.

Clark had been all night in between the Watchtower and his apartment, keeping Lois updated while she worked on Lex too. While in the Watchtower, he'd spent most of the time with Chris inside his room, not wanting to distract him, he figured, too much, but making sure he knew that he was there, completely available, in case they needed him. Clark had mastered the art of silent support with him. As many times as they usually disagreed, those unspoken gestures had been one of the crucial tools keeping their friendship so alive.

"Kal," greeted Diana revealing his presence in the room.

Clark approached them. "Any news?"

"Zsasz and Little Miss Hacker are secured," said Ollie. "No word from Japan."

Clark saw the concern Ollie hadn't been able to shake off all night. "Do you want me to check?," he asked.

Ollie smiled, but shook his head. "I'd like you to keep your superhearing intact, Clark, it is kind of useful," he said in reference as Clark's and Dinah's first encounter in the Planet all those years ago.

Diana looked at them clueless, and Clark explained himself. "First time we met, Dinah was working for the wrong guy."

"Lex Luthor, go figure," interrupted Ollie, having a perplexed Amazon Princess looking at them with wide eyes.

"For a very short time," Clark hurried to say. "She attacked Chloe and Ollie, and I went to stop her."

The memory made Ollie chuckle. "Yeah, she kicked our asses alright."

Clark rolled his eyes, happy at the lighter mood rendered by recalling the past and finished his telling. "She used her sonic cry." He winced at the memory and chuckled slightly. "That was painful," he remembered. "But Ollie, I wouldn't have to be close, you know," he nevertheless insisted. "Just to assure you they're ok."

"Dinah would find out, Clark. Somehow, she would find out and scream you deaf. Probably because you'd tell Lois, and, really, you don't take it seriously, but those two do talk. No peeping, Clark," he warned.

"He's alright, Kal," said Diana.

"Ok."

"But thanks."

"Anytime. I'm heading back home to see how's Lois doing. Be back later."

***

Sometimes Clark hovered. When he stood still airborne, he could focus better his other senses so he knew if he was needed somewhere. Other times he did it for the contrary, to shut out the world. Then, other times, he hovered, unseen, before their home. Just to look at her being herself. That was a sight to behold indeed. And his little secret.

Lois was checking some notes in their living room, by now filled with scattered papers on the table, sofa and floor, going back to the laptop in a rush after, he knew, finding another lead to add. By the looks of it she was not taking any chances.

She had left the bedroom window open, so Clark entered through there and changed into something more comfortable. Even if he was planning to get back to the Watchtower later, he liked his plaid look at home.

"How's it going?," he asked Lois as he entered the room.

"Going, Smallville," she said in a happy mood despite the late hour. "Finally going. And the League?"

"Going too," he said. Then he sat by her side. "Need any help?"

Without even looking, Lois shook her head. "No, I got it covered, Smallville. How's Chris?"

Clark smiled. They had been talking about Lois and overprotection and then about Chloe, and the boy had seemed eager to meet her. "He's fine. Asking about you."

"He's not going into any kind of bodyguard behavior with me, is he?" Clark's chuckle revealed the truth and she rolled her eyes. "You can't deny he's your son. Oh evil humanity, where art thou when I need you? I did something real bad in the past and my karma took me straight into Pleasant-krypton-ville. And if I hadn't enough with one, it reproduces."

"I talked to him, hon. I think you'll be able to control your little flock."

His comment made Lois stop suddenly her work and look at him in a rather serious way.

"What?," he asked unsure of the why of her reaction. "Did I say something?"

"You said flock."

"Yes..."

"Flock."

"As a figure of speech?"

"You can't say flock right now as if nothing, Smallville!," she suddenly exclaimed as if she didn't understand how could Clark be so insensitive. "What if we have a baby and it flies?"

"Um...he or she would be half kryptonian, hon. That is very likely to happen, I guess," he reasoned, still not getting the exclamation part of that.

"As a baby, Clark. What if he or she flies as a baby? How are we going to control that? Binding the little guy with hidden ropes?"

"Lois..."

"Do I have to get into falconry now?"

"Lois!"

"What? I'm trying to reason here, Smallville, and you're not helping."

"Honey," he said trying to calm the sudden mood swing suppressing the smile that threatened to go to his lips probably making it worse. "You're talking of a baby as if it were a hawk. What kind of reasoning is that?"

"Stark logic, Clark. I cannot have a flying baby around! How can...," she sighed heavily. "How could we not think about that," she said quietly in realization.

"Lois." Clark moved her face so she looked at him. "A flying baby would be the least of your worries if we could actually conceive. It wouldn't be a problem for you. We didn't talk about it because none of us thought that would be a concern. Sweetheart, are you alright? Maybe you should rest."

Lois looked lost for a second, and then she closed her eyes and took a short breath, as she usually did when she needed to compose herself. "You're right. I don't know where that came from. I'm tired and nervous, and tense with all this, I guess it all explains it."

"I'm going back to the Watchtower later. Why don't we both get a little rest and you continue tomorrow with this?"

"No way."

"A quick nap? Together? I swear I'll wake you up before I go."

"A quick nap. And I'll use my alarm to get up, I know you all too well."

***

Her hand shook when she pressed the key. "Don't disappoint me, Lex," she said to no one in particular.

And for good or bad, he didn't. The lab was unmistakably Lex's. The pods like the one she saw from Ollie's footage and sampling. But wait. Pods? Plural? One contained a slim masculine body. "Chris, I suppose." He was inside the liquid they were trying to identify, wearing a mask to...

"To breathe," Chloe said in realization. "That's it, it wasn't the liquid, it was in the air!"

She moved to call Emil and Clark, but what her peripheral view saw at that very moment made her turn back on the screen, focused on the second pod. It was a woman. It was hard to see, her head was bowed forward, and the liquid wasn't crystal clear. But a few traits could be outlined. And that broad forehead. She could imagine the green eyes. She remembered then very well. The name came in a whisper.

"Tess."

*****

**Notes: **"_But God be damned if Dinah thought..." _Helena is catholic. This is not meant to come out as a disrespectful blasphemy, only as a means to increase the intensity of emotions going around in that situation from the two of them, and because Helena is in a very uncomfortable position. I left a link to the music on the profile. If you have any problems downloading send me a message (sometimes megaupload gives me trouble).


	19. Chapter 18: Debts to Pay

**Chapter 18 "Debts to pay"**

**Disclaimer: **not mine.

*****

Breathing hurt. Each intake of air felt sharp against her ribcage. Her knuckles burned, the skin peeling, exposing flesh. Her nose was bleeding and she could feel the swelling forming on the left side of her face. A couple of broken ribs reminded her to cover her middle, and a very stupid defense flaw brought back sharply the searing pain of hurt bones, fear of broken legs bolting back on her until a mental diagnosis told her otherwise. It had been close, but she was sure that she had at least a fissured tibia, leaving her leg almost useless as rendered to searing pain; even standing was excruciating, not to mention supporting her weigh on that leg to kick her with the other.

Her throat was sore from the early blow she'd taken directed to disable her cry, bringing Dinah's lachrymal come to life against her will with the sheer need of water for the hurt larynges. Most of the worst strokes she'd received came from those seconds when she was taken over by instinctive coughing.

Dinah put all her senses into not letting Shiva see through her. But she couldn't help wincing when that boot collided with her elbow on a very bad place. With a side glance as she recovered her position, she saw Shiva smirk. Enjoying it.

"Tired yet?," she asked.

Dinah looked, keeping her thoughts to herself, and stroke back. She was physically hurt, emotionally drained and exhausted; hurting inside. That pain had been the force she'd used, and while dodging yet another blow, quickly turning and releasing her fist aiming for the kidneys, she wondered if Shiva would ever understand what it felt like. If she realized that the very person she had helped to kill was what was keeping her alive and fighting her back. Probably she didn't. That's why Dinah didn't bother to talk back. She was badly hurt and knew it. Couldn't keep it much longer. Luckily, Shiva wasn't unscathed either, that last blow to the kidneys had done its part. Shiva's focus had gone to her lower back for a millisecond. That was all Dinah needed, and she didn't waste time.

"This time, Shiva," she sent two kicks to make her go backwards. "I get to be," two fingers raced towards her throat, "the one silencing you." The fingers hit their mark. "I did learn the technique. I just never cared to use it." Momentarily out of air, Shiva looked at her with startled eyes. Just a few seconds, the time it took her to put her hands together and send her flying onto the wall, hitting it with the back of her head with a loud thump. Falling. Unconscious. Lying on the ground, breathing but unmoving. "It's over, Shiva. You lose."

Dinah let out a breath and closed her eyes.

_I did it, Babs._

She was aware of Helena calling out her name. Even casted a glance towards her friend rushing to her side, but she was already unconscious when her knees hit the ground.

***

Clark opened his eyes in their dark bedroom. Turning his face, he saw Lois sleeping. The alarm clock told him he had slept a couple of hours. He felt well rested, but wasn't that sure about Lois. He didn't need as much sleep as humans, but Lois should get the rest, he mused. Lex would still be there in the morning.

Clark pondered the situation. He had promised Lois to wake her, and, knowingly, she had refused, relying on their clock instead. Maybe if he, inadvertently, switched it off...maybe if he was very, very lucky, Lois would think that amidst her tiredness, she had forgotten to turn it on and...and cows could fly. Right. Clark suppressed a chuckle and thought simply of turning the alarm off and praying that Lois hadn't any kryptonite hidden around. She could be so stubborn sometimes. But she needed the rest, she was pushing herself very hard, and that was starting to get a toll on her. Sleeping out of hours? He couldn't remember when had she done that. And this evening had not been the first time.

So yes, that was what he'd do. With full determination, Clark moved very slowly away from Lois and extended his hand towards the alarm clock. Not seeing a smug smirk curving a certain mouth.

"Gotcha."

Clark looked down to be met by a pair of quirked eyebrows and hazel eyes.

"For being the most powerful man on the Planet you're awfully predictable, Smallville."

"You give me too much credit, Miss Lane," he said in a lame attempt at getting out of that one.

She merely nodded and got up.

"So you're not going back to bed."

As an answer, she went to the bathroom and washed her face with fresh water, coming out of it with a towel in hand. "I'm going to prepare some coffee, would you like some?"

No, she wasn't going back to bed and she was wearing her 'don't you even dare to question it' attitude, so Clark just surrendered knowing it was all he could do. "No, hon. I'd better get going." Clark changed into his costume and checked his communicator, empty of messages.

"No messages a good thing?," asked Lois correctly reading his action.

"Not sure. They didn't have anything from Japan when I left. But they haven't called me, so I guess they didn't need me there."

He hoped. Dinah could be so stubborn sometimes...

Clark wasn't aware of his worry reaching his face until Lois was embracing him. He looked down at her, smiling contently.

"Dinah will be alright, don't worry."

"She's very stubborn."

"She is."

Raised eyebrow. "Just like you."

Knowing smirk. "Aha. She's pretty cool, isn't she?"

"That why you two get along so well?"

"Probably. But you know, our relationship was never easy. That punch had me sore for days."

***

Helena raced, letting all her tension out, to aid her stumbling friend, gently grabbing her limp body before her head hit the ground, falling to her knees with her unconscious friend as she grabbed her from her waist and shoulders. She stood holding her as tight as she thought she could without hurting her further, letting a very much needed long breath out. Suddenly she heard some stirring and her whole body tensed. Gently, she led Dinah on the ground and turned to see Shiva slowly coming back to consciousness.

With her usual feral demeanor, Helena calmly approached her, standing over her body, observing her. She had taken her fair share of blows herself, she mused; her skin would be covered in bruises and, hopefully, it would hurt for days. Helena merely waited until the stir evolved in more movement. She wanted to see those eyes open. And she wanted them to look at hers. They did, a few seconds later. Helena smirked.

"Looks like you lost," she said.

"I still got to your crippled friend."

Shiva didn't see the punch coming, rendering her unconscious again.

"Thanks. I needed that." Helena laced Shiva's hands and feet and gave her a powerful sedative. "That will keep your mouth shut, Lady Dinah Beat The Crap Out Of You."

"I think like the ring of that."

The voice made Helena turn to find Dinah slowly trying to sit up, wincing at whatever pain she was feeling in, most probably, her whole body. Smiling, Helena went back to her and sat by her side.

"You look like hell," she said.

_Ouch. Smiling hurts_. "I feel like hell," responded Dinah.

Helena wiped some drying blood from her lip with her thumb. "You did it, Dinah. You put the bitch out. Fair and square."

Dinah nodded, but Helena saw a hint of darkness in her friend's eyes. "Sweetie, what's wrong? Something hurting to much?," she asked, and instinctively she started to examine for broken bones or internal bleeding. Dinah stopped her hands with hers and held them. Helena realized she had confused darkness with sorrow.

"I'm sorry about what I made her say, Helena," she started to apologize. "It was the only way I could think of--"

Helena gently placed her fingers on Dinah's lips, silencing her with the best reassuring smile she could give. "It's over, Dinah." Helena looked into her eyes, wanting the sadness to go away. Hating the sadness for not going away. "You did what you had to do."

"Still. I'm sorry."

"I know." Helena kissed the top of her head. "Come on, let's go home, hon. We have to clean and dress those wounds or I'll never hear the end of it with Ollie."

"Don't worry, I have my ways of shutting Ollie up."

"Yeah, right. The way you must be feeling right now? I don't think you'd be up to that."

Helena helped her up, placing one of her arms around Dinah's waist, making her wince in pain.

"Ouch."

"Sorry," apologized Helena, "but you're too heavy to be carried."

"You're right," she admitted. "Not up for anything right now."

Limping and supporting herself on Helena, Dinah made it to the bike, relieved to get pressure off her legs. Helena didn't get on the bike and looked around, searching for something on the spot she'd been staying throughout the fight. "What is it?"

"I threw your comm-link somewhere here."

"You think Oracle's gonna kick your butt for losing it?"

"No. I'm hoping she has an exit plan ready and running for us to get outta here, because there's no way I'm driving that bike with an injured best friend and an unconscious bitch."

Dinah smiled. Chloe always had back up plans. And this time it was obvious they'd need one. For all she knew, Chloe had probably planned it as part of the original mission. Helena and her had been so focused on getting to Shiva that neither of them had cared about how would they get back.

The sound of an approaching helicopter confirmed her suspicions. Chloe had set the exit way from the very beginning. And by looking at those landing maneuvers she knew so well, her grin widened: she had planned it perfectly.

She saw Helena smiling too while she talked through the recovered device.

_I owe you one, Chloe._

***

Clark was welcomed by smiling faces. Didn't even need to ask, as once Ollie saw him coming he informed him.

"Shiva's being brought back," he said, not hiding his grin.

"I'm glad, Ollie," he replied, not referring to Shiva being captured, but to Dinah being back.

"Thanks," said Ollie. "You can go home, both of you," he said addressing Clark and Diana. "I'm sure Lois will be glad to see you stick around for more than a couple of hours for a change."

"She's working," said Clark arising an understanding look and a chuckle from Ollie. "Chris awake?," he asked. It was an insanely late hour, but as a Kryptonian, he didn't either need the sleep. And Chris had asked him to know more about Chloe. Clark had to admit it, talking about Chloe, knowing that her return was more real than ever, was great.

"He was here a few minutes ago," said Diana. "I'm sure he's awake."

***

Chloe's self pat on the back for her little surprise for Dinah and Helena didn't suppress the nerves from her discovery, and now that the impending task, coordinating the three teams, was over, it was time to move back to it. That image of Tess inside that pod still haunted her. Whatever Lex was doing to her... Chloe didn't want to think about it. Almost mechanically, she started to gather the information she would send to Lois while she called the Watchtower. It was really late, so no way she was going to call Clark directly.

Silently, she hoped he was at the League's headquarters while she called Ollie, not sure of how much information she wanted to share with him through radio.

***

"I knew Mom loved her very much, but I didn't know she was that cool."

Clark chuckled. Chloe had left quite an impression on him through the stories he'd told him. His enthusiastic response fitting his age was something Clark thanked specially. He didn't want Chris to grow up too quickly. No kid deserved it.

"Yeah. I guess being cool," he said mimicking Chris' choice of words, "runs in the family."

"Not when I hear her talk about the general," the boy said with an innocent quirk of his lips.

"Yeah, well. Lois' father is special his own way, I guess."

Lois would never change. She never referred to her father as anything but 'the general', so that was the name Chris called him.

"Dad?"

"Hm?"

"Is Mom going to kill Chloe when she knows she's alive?"

Clark suppressed the snort. "She's going to be very annoyed I'm afraid," said Clark in all honesty. "But don't worry, she'll understand."

"Dad," said Chris again.

"Tell me."

"Mom is known for holding grudges."

Getting to know Lois could take a lifetime. After all this years Clark felt he was still uncovering superficial layers. But certain traits, she seemed to carry like a banner.

"I'm banking on her other famous trait, son."

"Which is?"

"Going feral when it comes to protecting her family."

Both smiled. Then Chris turned more serious and looked at Clark with innocent honest concerned eyes. Almost afraid to ask.

"Dad?"

"Hm?"

"Will I have to...to stop calling Mom...well...Mom? I mean, when Chloe comes back I'm supposed to be her son, right?"

"Come here." Clark opened his arm to let Chris sit by his side on the bed. "I think that is a bridge to cross with them, son." He placed his hand on the boy's shoulder. "When it comes, ok?"

He nodded.

"But you know whatever comes out of this, you're still our son. Names, titles, they don't matter that much, Chris."

"Thanks, Dad."

"Anytime."

The father-son moment was interrupted by the door opening, and a serious looking Ollie entering. "Something wrong?," asked Clark reading his friend's face.

Ollie was absent for a second before answering. "No." He paused again. "Chloe called, she has new information," he said. "She wanted to talk to you."

"She didn't give you more details?"

Ollie shook his head. "She was specially cryptic with me, insisting on talking to you first. You know her, it'll probably be something so Superman related, that she'll want you to know first."

Chris looked up to Clark's face, still and pensive. Ollie seemed to get the same sensation than him. "Clark?"

Both Ollie and Chris waited for him to talk. What neither expected were his words.

"Chris, how do you feel about meeting Chloe?"

Chris blinked twice. "What?"

"Clark?" Ollie was as confused as Chris.

"The shadow team is already on Lex?" Ollie nodded. Clark turned to Chris. You have no trackers on, I don't see any reason why you shouldn't be able to make a quick visit to Gotham, he said smiling.

"Clark, are you sure?," asked Ollie.

"I wouldn't if I had any doubts."

Ollie nodded. He knew Clark well enough to know that he wasn't bluffing.

"Come on, Chris, I still owe you a flight."

"You're-- Dad, I can wait a little longer, I don't mind, really, I--"

Clark placed his hand on his mouth. "Son. Let's go."

***

Helena tended on Dinah's wounds. She hadn't said a thing since they got to the helicopter Oracle had sent them. Zinda piloting it. It felt so right. Helena made a mental note to thank the new Oracle for that.

Dinah winced when she adjusted the bandages. "Sorry 'bout that, but it's got to be tight," she said looking at Dinah. "Luckily it seems to be the only thing broken."

Then she went on to finishing cleaning up a few cuts on her face, and then gently took care of her hands. Dinah let her do, still silent.

"That was a hell of a fight out there, Dinah. That first row ticket you gave me beats any 3D film, you know? I almost got hit by a flying tooth," she said trying to lighten the mood. Didn't seem to work. Helena let out a sigh.

"I happened to love that tooth."

Helena looked up, finally seeing those familiar baby blues staring back at her.

"I chewed nuts with it."

"Then I guess you'll have to find another tooth."

"Nah. I think I'll stick to peanuts from now on."

"About goddamn time you open your peak there, birdie. I was starting to get worried!," suddenly came a voice from the cabin.

"Zinda?" Dinah chuckled. "I'm sorry, guess I was too busy hurting."

"Well, lemme tell ya, nutcracker, that bitch o'er there is gonna have a killer body ache when she comes back," said the pilot. "Good job."

"Thanks, Zinda." Then she whispered to Helena. "How does she listen to our conversations?"

Before Helena could answer, Zinda spoke again. "Communication, girls. I told the new skipper gal I wanted to know ev'rything happening on all sides of my planes. About frikkin' time, 'cause lemme tell ya, piloting alone while you girls have fun is boring to death."

Both women laughed. "We really have to thank Oracle for that one," said Helena.

Dinah smiled. Sure she'd tell that to Chloe.

"How are you feeling?," the dark haired woman asked in a more serious but gentle voice.

"I hurt all over. Hell, I hurt in places I didn't know I could hurt in."

"I didn't mean outside," said Helena in a soft tone.

"I hurt there too. But I feel better." Dinah looked at Helena. "Thanks."

"For what?"

"For trusting me. For letting me do this even though I'm sure you wanted to butt in and kick the crap out of her."

"You would've done the same for me, Dinah." There was really no need of anything more said other than that simple statement, and both knew it. "C'mon, get some rest before you start babbling corny things at me."

"Would that make you blush?"

"No. It would make me throw you out of the plane before you turned me into a mush ball."

***

"I thought we were going to the Batcave," said Chris while they landed by a huge clock on the outside of a tower in Gotham City.

"Not today," said Clark guiding him through the door giving access to the building. "Come on, son, she's waiting for us."

Chris stepped inside the building. It looked like no one had been inside for quite a while. Clark had told him about Dinah's friend, the one who had died and the one Chloe Sullivan was working as now. Now they were going to bring Chloe back, it didn't matter that he knew everything. He wouldn't have to keep it a secret from Lois either.

Chris liked the idea of that unveiled. It was enough to conceal the fact that he had been conscious in that lab much longer than expected. He didn't want any more lies on his shoulders.

His thoughts soon faded when he found himself in a room full of computers. And a woman in it.

*****

**Notes: "**..._fear of broken legs bolting back on her_...**" **Dinah's legs were broken once (Birds of Prey reference).

**Music notes: **Dinah and Helena's first talk. **John Powell**, _Mary brings meatballs_ (Hancock OST). Soundtrack finally completed and uploaded. I left a link on my profile.


	20. Chapter 19: Different Warm Suns

**Chapter 19 "Different warm suns"**

**Disclaimer: **not mine.

**Notes: **Covers 26th (morning) and 27th (night) of Aug. Plus a flashback.

*****

"Hey."

A small woman, with the sweetest voice he'd ever heard, matching an equally warming smile. Her hand extended to him, and he shook it.

"I know," she said as she saw the young boy studying her, "we don't look alike at all."

"Chris, this is Chloe," said Clark.

"Uh...hi," he attempted to say.

Leaving the platitudes for another time and thus giving Chris some space and time to get over the slight discomfort she was receiving, Chloe directed them towards the main computer.

"You said you had news," said Clark.

Chloe nodded. "Busy night. Wilson, Zsasz and Shiva will be taken to Commissioner Gordon as soon as the three are on Gothamite soil. The day after tomorrow, I think."

"That's great news," said Chris.

"As for the rest," Chloe went to one of the tables and handled Clark a new memo-stick. "Take this to Lois. It is the last set of information," she finally said. Clark took it and looked at her. "The videos that cost Barbara her life," she added softly.

"Decrypted?"

Another nod. "Just a few hours ago. They directly link Lex with the lab keeping Chris," she said staring at both. "He wasn't alone," she added, fully catching Clark's attention. "There's a second pod."

"Another one?"

Chloe swallowed. "I think...I know," she said correcting herself, "who she is."

"She?," asked Clark.

"It's Tess," she finally said. Clark's eyes opened wide. "I think Lex has been experimenting on her too."

Clark sighed with eyes closed. It made sense. In Lex's sick mind it was pure logic in fact. She had betrayed him, she had to pay the price. As simple as that. Truth be told, they had always thought of demotion. Never torture. Tess had swam in ambiguity long enough to avoid that.

The moment he had heard the woman's name, Chris had instinctively looked away. He remembered vividly the agonizing screams. Clark was too struck by the news to notice, but Chloe saw the change in the boy's expression. Making a mental note to ask Chris later, she took Clark's hands on hers bringing back his full attention to her. "Take it to her, Lois will know what to do."

He nodded. Lois would be awake, so there was no point in stalling. And the night was beginning to fade under the pink tones of a new dawn. "Chris, stay here, I'll be back in a minute." And as soon as he said that, he left, leaving an air current behind him.

Chloe placed the strand of hair behind her ear again. "You know, I really never got used to that," she said casting a furtive glance to see if her casual comment had triggered the reaction she was fishing for, and smiled content at her success.

"He can't do it at home," stated Chris with the unconscious smile.

"Lois prohibited him to do it," said Chloe not really asking. Chris nodded and shrugged. "Heh."

"He complied."

Thinking about Lois' temper Chloe smiled and suddenly felt all the pressure of the impending reunion. Her stump made itself present and she had to sit down, all of a sudden feeling a very small person. "Lo is so going to kill me," she said shaking her head.

Before Chris could respond, a new wind current, and a red and blue blur turned into Superman wearing a goofy grin and a knowing look. "I'll try to stop her before she gets to the kryptonite to kill me too."

"You better. I won't be fast enough," she replied.

Chris was still amazed by Clark's display of power to listen to their light joking. "You flew there and back?"

He got a simple nod as an answer. Clark wasn't one to enjoy showing off his abilities. He had to be quick, so he was. End of the story. Chloe knew about that, so she didn't even bother.

"It's good you were fast, we need to discuss something more."

"You mean that wasn't everything?," he asked. "Chloe, I thought--"

_What else was there?_

"I know it sounds ridiculous to have found out everything in one night after so many weeks of dead ends, Clark, but I did," she said matter-of-factly. And her gaze went to Chris. "The video feed showed Chris and Tess on the pods, in suspended animation. Clark, Bruce checked every single tube, debris and substance, and found nothing. There is only one way to explain it," she said referring to Chris' odd condition. "He breathed it."

"What?" asked both in unison.

"Look, no known kryptonian becomes 'human' just by magic. Any physiological change you go through on Earth is connected to kryptonite. We know it can be modified, we've seen, we've used liquid kryptonite, so why not heat it until it evaporates? Maybe even its reaction with oxygen in a gaseous state changes it even more. The air supply he got through is the only option left. I can't think of anything else," she concluded. Chloe waited for some reaction, but Clark had gone very still, face unreadable.

It was Chris who broke the silence.

"So I breathed some kind of kryptonite or something?"

"So it seems Chris, but we need to be sure. And probably being away from the sun made the effects last long on your body," she added gently.

"That would explain it," he said with a hint of hope. He felt good, he could fly, he had his powers except for the skin weakness. He looked back at Clark, but his smile faded seeing him deep in thought.

_The air._

"Chloe, do you think you can get Emil to his lab this early?," Clark asked out of the blue.

Chloe checked her watch, a little startled when she realized the time. "Um, sure, I think."

"As fast as you can." It wasn't a question.

"Clark, what's--"

"I'll explain later. Chris, you stay with her, I'll be back soon."

_Lex, I'm going to--_

***

Clark flew back to his apartment, not before taking a detour through the Atlantic to calm down, and hopefully to give Emil time to get to his lab. He didn't either want Lois to see him like that. With rage. It was a feeling he wasn't comfortable with, because it was primal. And by definition, primal meant hard to control. And he knew what could happen if he didn't control himself. Once he reached the Portuguese coast he flew North, quickly passing France, and soon leaving the British islands behind. He even considered a visit to the Fortress, but left that thought away. Right at the limits of the Northern Atlantic, he turned on a right angle, took a vertical fly upwards and stopped in the sky, hoping to find that second of lucidness he needed before heading back home. A pause and a breath. Once he made sure he had attained it, he turned and flew back to Metropolis.

Soon he was entering through the window he had left open. Lois heard him.

"Clark?"

He entered into the living room, where Lois was still working, looking around. "It was the air, Lois," he said, his eyes looking for something unseen to her.

"The air? What are you talking about?," she asked unknowing what he meant.

He finally looked at her. "Chris," he said. "And me. Whatever they put inside our bodies. We breathed it." Then he stopped and focused his sight on one spot of the ceiling, coinciding with the smoke alarm device. And Lois knew what he was looking for. His symptoms, though lesser, had been the same. Someone had poisoned the air supply. The logical place to look was home.

"The techs fixing the net," she realized. How very convenient Internet meltdown.

Clark nodded. Then he hovered up towards the ceiling, looking for it, whatever it was. Lois knew he found it the moment he froze in midair. Soon after she saw the heat beams and the hole forming in the ceiling. A very serious looking Clark pushed the piece of plaster out and grabbed something. Some kind of machine with a small fan and tubes, a mechanism built to spread air. Only this was poisonous air for kryptonians. Somehow it attacked their system, and they didn't know the real effects.

"Damn him, Clark," snarled Lois through gritted teeth.

Clark hovered down with the machine in his hands, trying hard not to crush it. He knew he had to take it to Emil. He merely stopped the engine, but left the container intact so the substance, whatever it was and if there was any trace of it left, could be analyzed.

"I'm taking this to Emil," he said calmly, and kissed her head, proud that he had managed to control himself, knowing that a big part of the strength for such an achievement came from the owner of the warm hand covering his cheek. Cerulean met hazel and there was no word exchange needed.

Once alone, Lois went back to her laptop and notes. Her work was enough advanced. It was time to have a serious talk with her boss. Checking the time, she took the phone.

"Lane. Do you think you can pull out an extra meeting with your star reporter in an hour?"

***

The next few hours would be a blur of events for both of them. While Lois prepared her notes to present the story to Perry, Clark flew to Emil's personal lab with the machine in hand, all kinds of thoughts rushing through his head. Closer now to know the truth, to know what was wrong with Chris and how serious it really was.

Fortunately, Chloe had been above efficient in contacting him, and Emil lived close, so he didn't have to wait for the doctor to come but for a few minutes. Once he arrived, Clark handed him the machine.

"This is what they used to poison Chris and me," he said giving Emil the wired box. "I'm not sure if there's something left."

Emil took the machine. "I'll get on it right now."

"Emil," he said. The doctor was already working on the machine. "Take whatever test you need on me. I don't want to go without knowing what's been going on with Chris."

Emil turned and looked at him. "Don't worry, Clark. If my theory's correct, you and the young man will be alright."

***

Lois finished gathering her notes. Oracle had sent her instructions and a time schedule. The three murderers would be under Gotham City's Police Department custody in less than a day now. A shadow team was already on Lex so he couldn't get away. She was also given the facts concerning Barbara Gordon's death. This was the big risk: Barbara Gordon's alias was going public, Oracle would be officially exposed. Lois wasn't too keen on the idea of exposing anybody's secret identity, but they all knew it was the only way to catch Lex, because at least one of the murderers, Shiva, knew her identity. The truth was the only getaway for them, even at the risk of exposure for others. There was just one question lingering on Lois' mind as she packed her laptop and left for the Planet:

The name of the woman presently claiming Oracle's name.

***

Clark waited to see the results. Emil had analyzed his blood, his cells and his body again.

"So far it all looks normal. It's too soon to tell, Clark, but there is no trace of disease, neither in you nor in Chris."

"Are you sure?," he asked, still concerned.

Emil nodded. "And your body reacts the same. Look." Emil took a device resembling a laser card reader and placed in on his hand. It was the radiation enhancer he'd been working on since he started thinking about the extent of the molecular change on Chris during his first visits to the Watchtower.

"What is it?," asked Clark.

"Solar radiation." Then he took a needle and pressed it on the same hand. It didn't bend, like the former tests. It broke. "See? Once you stop receiving the gas, the yellow sun does its work. It hasn't worked on Chris because he's been secluded and still hasn't received enough solar radiation."

"And Lois?," he asked with renewed concern, "is there any chance she's affected by it?"

"I don't think this has any effect on humans, Clark, she should be safe. But bring her tomorrow, I'll run some tests on her too."

Clark nodded, then stood up and prepared to leave.

"Where are you going?"

"To cure Chris."

***

Lois waited for Perry to say something. Her boss was glued to his chair reading the whole report she had prepared for him.

"Great Caesar's Ghost, Lane, this is very serious stuff," he finally said.

"I told you it was big. The White House is his way to legally declare a State of Emergency and have the whole country wrapped around his fingers."

"On what?"

"Biohazard. He has the virus, Perry, it's bioengineered and so far we know it affects kryptonians, and can probably attack humans, metahumans and other aliens. I have info on his labs and experiments on a kryptonian subject. We can't expose his ID, but the JLA will provide me with the test results."

Perry made a long pause. He always did that when it came to big stories, and Lois hated it, but waited stoically patient nonetheless. Finally, he spoke. "Lois, an attempt against Superman's life is serious enough, but it does not justify what you're saying about the White House thing. Luthor has a record of a political career attempt. The man likes power." He paused and added carefully one last sentence. "And we cannot afford another mishap on your side."

"There's more," she insisted ignoring Perry's last statement. "A human subject," she said. "Remember Tess Mercer?"

Perry nodded. Former C.E.O. of LuthorCorp before Lex came back and changed even the name of his company. He also remembered Lois not being especially fond of her, so the fact that she seemed genuinely worried about the woman's well being was not to be taken lightly.

"Another tip from the League?," he asked.

"No," said Lois categorically. "I have video feed. Both the kryptonian and Tess inside pods. It seems they're also part of the reason why Barbara Gordon was murdered, Perry. Under direct orders from Lex."

"The so called Oracle," he said recalling Lois' report.

"Yes."

Perry stood still, frowning, his mind racing, Lois figured. "Lois, if this is wrong it will blow on all our journalistic asses."

"And if we don't the whole humanity's rear ends will pay for it. Give me the green light, Perry, or I swear it, I'll publish it myself if no other paper accepts it."

"God help us if we're wrong, Lane," he said nodding at the same time, granting Lois the needed approval.

***

"You look nervous, Miss Sullivan."

Chloe smiled. "Chloe."

"Sorry."

"I am. Nervous, that is," she added.

"I am too," he confessed. "And excited," he added with a grin. "I want to go home. But I don't want her to be mad. Because she's going to be mad at you, isn't she?," he asked innocently.

"Big time," she said chuckling. "But she deserves to be. It's not easy to understand some things I did."

"But you lied to protect her life. Isn't that good?," he asked eagerly.

Chloe read his tone and decided to take the chance at that moment, using carefully her own voice's direction. "Is that why you lied too? To protect them?," she asked as gently as she could.

That reaction caught him unaware. "I--"

"I saw your reaction before, when I talked about Tess. And I also saw this." Chloe pushed a bottom on her laptop.

A video, neither Clark nor Lois had seen, started playing. It showed Chris on a stretcher. Conscious.

"The footage is from six months ago, Chris," she said softly.

Chris looked down ashamed. "I didn't want them to know it," he confessed with a thread of voice. Then he looked up, revealing a set of teary eyes. "She would've suffered more. He would've gone after Mr. Luthor, despite what he says, I...I was trying to protect them."

Chloe bit her lip and cupped his face with her hands. "Chris..." It wasn't fair that such a young person took that burden, kryptonian or not. It hadn't been fair to Clark. It shouldn't be for Chris.

"It doesn't matter now, son."

Chloe and Chris turned. "The sacrifices are over," he said walking towards them. "You two have given up far more than you should have. It ends now."

"Dad, I--"

"I understand, Chris," he said gently. "We'll talk about this. Later. You're coming with me now." Then he gazed Chloe. "Let Oracle finish her work here. It's been a long night, and there's still to do."

Clark kissed Chloe on her cheek, whispering a thank you, and left with Chris.

"Where are we going?"

"To get you cured," he said. "Follow me."

Chris flew behind Clark, upwards, above the clouds, and up, up as he had never been before. Suddenly Clark stopped and hovered until Chris reached him.

"Take my hand, Chris."

"Are we going further?"

"As close as we can to the sun."

***

**Gotham City. Three and a half years ago.**

_"Climbing on the toweeeer..."_

_"Dinah..."_

_"Floating out on the seaaaaa..."_

_"Shut it..."_

_"Far from the lights of Gotham cityyyyyyy...." _

_Barbara tried to ignore the irritating singing directed to her. To no avail. Dinah would not shut up. _

_"The elements they speaaaaak to meeeee, whispering that Diiiiiiiick, exiiisteeed loooooong before meeeeeee...balancing my Baaaaabs on his kneeee." _

_As hard as she tried, Barbara couldn't avoid the smile on her face._

_"Ok, that's it, Dinah."_

_"Second verse gets better, really, don't wanna hear it? It speaks of my undying lust for you."_

_"Sure. Ollie's gonna be ecstatic about that."_

_"Ollie's a cover so Dick doesn't hit me."_

_"And all this bad singing because...," said Barbara waiting for an answer while trying to avoid the mentioning of Dick._

_"Because I grew up in Seattle and couldn't help it?"_

_"Didn't mean the song, which, I thought you knew by now, I do not like. I meant what the hell did you drink. Zinda's gotten onto you? One sot on the group is enough, thankyouverymuch."_

_"Despite your dubious taste in music, lemme tell ya, girl, I was just innocently trying to cheer you up while we wait until that frikkin' screen tells us something."_

_"And patience was never a virtue of you. Spill it, Dinah." Barbara looked at her correctly reading there was something more Dinah wanted to talk about but wasn't sure how to approach._

_"How long since the last time you had sex?"_

_Barbara thanked the fact that she wasn't drinking her tea at that moment. She would've choked and spilled it all over the keyboard__. "What?"_

_"Sex. You. How long?"_

_"That's none of your concern."_

_Dinah sat in front of her faking a huge pout with puppy eyes, making her smile very much despite herself. "Oh, sweetie. That long? Should I go and pay a visit to a certain acrobat with the hottest costume on earth?"_

_"No. You should shut up and let me do my job. We're on a mission here, Canary."_

_"I haven't had sex with Ollie for two weeks now, and I swear, Babs, I'm not going to dye my hair before I see him in case I have an orgasm while they massage my head."_

_"So many things I really don't want to know..."_

_"Is it....is it not the same for you?," Dinah asked a little more serious._

_"Sex?" Dinah nodded. "It's different. But the pleasure is there. Just not in the same body parts, at least not in all of them."_

_"Dick got the job done, right?," asked Dinah with a frown._

_"Dinah, what kind of question is that?"_

_"The question a concerned friend would ask, Babs," said Dinah in a no-nonsense tone. "I'm trying to understand why are you on the path to becoming a virgin again when you have the most amazing guy in the world there, for you. Knowing you, I didn't think sex was the issue, though I wanted to make sure."_

_"No. Sex is not an issue between us. That is for sure."_

_"Then it is because you're plain stupid?"_

_"I don't think a relationship between Dick and me is a good idea, that's all."_

_"Well, you didn't think that with Ollie and me. I'd say you suck alright as a love counselor, you know? And for once, maybe for once, you could just give a chance to my ramblings, take me seriously once in a while, because--"_

_"Dinah." Dinah looked at her friend, staring back at her in complete seriousness, suddenly noticing her hand holding hers. "I always listen to you. Always. Don't think this rambling of yours is going to fade away. I wish it did, because you're a pain." They both chuckled, but Barbara didn't leave the honest tone in her voice. "But it will. You always reach inside, Dinah. I just...I guess I'm afraid of what will happen when my walls fall. Real world hits hard, you know?"_

_"I do,__" came the quiet reply._

_Barbara mentally slapped her face. __"Of course you do. I'm sorry, that wasn't very sensitive."_

_"And you know who pulled me out?," continued Dinah._

_"Green and hot as hell?"_

_That got a smirk from the blonde. __"Yeah. And with an incredibly beautiful red hair she doesn't have to dye. You have no idea how much I envy that." Dinah squeezed her hands and reached for her friend's chin, making sure Babs looked at her. "Sweetie, give it a chance, I know you love him. I know he loves you. And if you crash, which I'm sure you won't, let me be there for you, all mushy and corny and cheesy."_

_Babs chuckled and let Dinah hug her. "Ok, I'll think about it."_

_"Wow." And Dinah's body went still in the middle of the hug._

_"What?," asked Barbara with a hint of concern._

_"It's almost as if Batman praises you for something. I never thought I'd hear you saying that."_

_"Brat."_

_"Babs."_

_"Yeah?"_

_"You will give me all the details, right?"_

_"As if you'd leave me alone if I didn't."_

_"Glad you know me."_

Dinah's mental image of Babs smiling at her side inside the Clocktower dissolved away, replaced by the sight of her best friend's father. Dick, Helena, three killers and James Gordon, all in the same rooftop. It stung. And at the same time it marked the end of the nightmare. At last. But she didn't feel closure. The wounds were open, sore, aching. The pain had just intensified with her incapacity of blocking away her empathy and sympathy for Barbara's father. He was there, standing in front of them, confronting the people responsible for his daughter's death, with an uncanny endurance and almost supernatural calm.

So Dinah went back to her memory, never to hear Dick telling him who the criminals were and what had each of them done. She didn't notice Shiva flinching from the sudden tightening of her own grasp on her arm. She was somewhere else. In a warm place, remembering her best friend smiling at her and making her see she was important to her, letting her know that behind that green mask of security and pride there was a human person, flawed like the next girl, and she had reached inside those barriers, deep. Whatever she was feeling, she stayed there. The words directed to her, or spoken around her, on that building, she'd never remember, she wasn't even sure she heard them. But she would never forget what happened next.

The three criminals were taken away by policemen, and Babs' father stood in front of the three costumed heroes. Words unspoken, he approached them. He whispered something to Helena, they both smiled, and Dinah could see Huntress quickly squeezing his hand. She would've sworn Helena had a hard time containing her tears. Then Dick. She saw the pain in both men, their mutual loss. A handshake and a look that screamed everything they needed to hear.

Dinah kept her mind elsewhere, in a warm memory, watching Babs smile, until yellow-colored glasses were changed by a pair of old pale grateful eyes staring back at her. She managed a smile. She didn't know how, but he didn't deserve less. He took her face in his hands and gave her a kiss in her forehead. Dinah let herself feel his embrace, and didn't let go for a long while. She didn't let go until she could go back to her little warm memory. She could not afford breaking down in the old man's arms. Not with him. And yet she let herself relish in his warmth, however bittersweet it was.

Dick looked at Dinah and Gordon. "I think it's time we go, Huntress," he spoke in a low soft tone.

Helena said nothing. She merely nodded, turned and walked away with Dick, jumping towards another building over the city. She waited until they were far to talk again. "You think they'll be alright?"

"I think they both needed that moment."

"And you?;" she asked placing a warm hand on his shoulder. "Dick, I think..."

He smiled at her. "I feel for him. A lot. But I didn't have a close relationship with him as Nightwing. Dinah did."

"Looking for closure for her?"

"In a way, I guess. She deserves it."

She nodded in agreement. "So do you," she added.

"I'm getting there, Helena. Honestly. But it'll take time." He paused. "A long time," he added losing the gentle smile he had pulled for Helena.

"Dick."

"Yeah?"

"Take the time you need. But don't make it too long. Babs wouldn't like that."

Dick smiled at the thought. No. She definitely wouldn't like that.

*****

**Music notes: **Dinah's warm memory **Explosions in the sky **"_Remember me as a time of the day_"


	21. Chapter 20: Climbing Slippery Hills

**Chapter 20 "Climbing slippery hills"**

**Disclaimer: **not mine.

**Note: **28th and 29th August. Plus a flashback.

*****

Chloe walked down the streets of Gotham in dire need of some fresh air and in a feeble attempt to ease the stress. Those last days had been draining in all sorts of ways, and there was a lot coming ahead. She couldn't deny to herself the fact that she was nervous, her system was making a hell of a job there, bombarding her mind with so many thoughts that the apartment had seem clautrophobicly tiny and she'd found herself on dire need for open space and fresh air.

Lost in her thoughts with no apparent exit, Chloe roamed the streets of Gotham with her eyes fixed on the ground.

No. The monotone pavement was not helping, so when she suddenly lifted her head and saw the familiar presence leaning on a wall with both eyes begging for forgiveness for being there, right in the middle of her unplanned route, she was happy for the intrussion.

Chloe walked towards him, eyeing a mixture of sheepness and kindness, as if he was not sure whether she'd like the company or she'd prefer some solitude. After all, she suspected he wanted to say something to her, but never the kind of guy who would go and intrude personal space, he had opted for a safely distant watch.

Chloe hadn't known Dick Grayson on a personal level, but she felt he was _that_ kind of man. So when she saw him there, she smiled. Talking to him would help her get her mind off all the different things that were going happen once she got foot (oh the irony) on Metropolis' soil.

"I hope I didn't make you wait for long," she said still wearing a smile.

"I hope it doesn't bother you. I figured you'd need rest, I didn't have anything to do, so..." He scratched the back of his head and pulled respectful puppy eyes. "Mind sharing your walk?," he asked tentatively.

"In fact thankful for the intrusion," she said receiving a confused look. "Crowded mind, don't ask." Dick didn't ask. They both started walking, and as he would stay silent, Chloe decided to say something. Anything for her mind to rest a little. Even platitudes. "I like Gotham in daylight," was her grand opening. "It's very different."

Dick nodded in full understanding. "It let's us be and feel 'normal' citizens."

Not a question, and never questioned by Chloe, who nodded silently. 'Normal' had such a different meaning for people like them that they sometimes even forgot that it existed. What the rest of the world called 'normal' was actually unreachable for them.

Dick looked at his suddenly silent companion and noticed a slight limp. He stopped and placed his hand on her arm. "Hey, are you ok? You look uncomfortable," he said directing his gaze to her leg.

Chloe followed the baby blues and realized.

"Maybe we should sit," he offered, gaining another Sullivan smile in return for the kindness.

"No, believe me. I've been sitting all day, I really need the exercise. It's just a little stiff. It'll get better."

So they kept walking and Dick didn't push it anymore.

"You did a great job, Chloe," he said.

"It was a team effort, Dick. And I was very lucky to have you guys out there." Chloe looked into the blue eyes. They were still hurting, but the darkest shades seemed to have faded. Both corners of his lips curved slightly upwards, but she decided not to enter emotional personal territory. "How's Dinah, by the way? Didn't get a chance to see her, but heard she took a pretty big fight."

"Knowing her it was probably epic." He turned slightly serious. "She didn't look like wanting to talk about it when I last saw her and anyway, someone was there for her," he said recalling her moment with Barbara's father. "But you know her, right?: 'bruised and battered but you should see the other one'. She's tough."

"Ollie will freak out."

"She won't let him."

Silently agreeing with a smile, Chloe changed the course of conversation. "So, did you want to talk to me about anything?"

"Just thanking you," came the simple reply. "And I already did. Plus a nice walk outside costumes."

It sounded forced. It sounded struggling. It sounded like he was scared out of his pants to tell the truth because he didn't want to hurt her. And Chloe knew what was going on behind the eyes. So she took the lead.

"Dick, it is ok by me if you're not comfortable around me," she replied. "You don't have to do this."

"I know." Pause. "I don't want to sound selfish to you, Chloe, but I need to get used to the fact that there is a new Oracle now." He went silent again, but Chloe waited for the explanations to come his own way. "We...I know we talked about it, and what I said about Babs dividing her identity thus making this easier for me is true. But I still have to find the blend of my lost future and the present I have." He looked at her. "You're on it. An identity on its own or not, Babs was Oracle. Now you're taking that mantle and I need to be comfortable about it. It's..."

She finished for him. "A professional relationship tied to a very personal past and you need to cut those ties without denial but through self direct exposure."

"I sound like a jerk, I know," he said apologetically for the truth spoken.

"You sound honest and sincere, Dick."

Dick turned his head towards the owner of the gentle hand on his shoulder.

"And I don't want to expect anything else from you."

Dick Grayson found that he liked that smile, and decided that for better or worse, he would eventually find that missing perfect blend.

Dick also found that Chloe Sullivan always seemed to know when to change a course of conversation.

"Any word from the Police Department?," she asked out of the blue.

"Bruce is there now. But I wouldn't worry, the evidence is overwhelming, Chloe. I don't think they'll get out of that one."

"I was thinking more about a bigger fish," she said with a frown of concern.

"Luthor?" She nodded. "Is he under custody already?"

"Just a matter of time. There's a team waiting. A single word from Bruce or Ollie and he'll be behind bars. The problem is for how long."

"Too slippery?"

"Like an oiled eel," said Chloe. And her mind went to another set of thoughts slightly troubling her. "Dick," she asked.

"Yeah?"

"Bruce is known for his unbreakable sense of justice. You know him better than anyone I can think of."

"He always does the right thing, Chloe, even when it hurts." During the weeks of exhausting research at the Batcave, Dick had hinted the tension on Superman, to whom, he had learned, Chloe was close.

"I'm not sure if that's a good or a bad thing right now," said Chloe, her thoughts on Clark. If Bruce thought that Clark was to blame for Barbara's death...Clark was in trouble.

***

Commissioner James Gordon watched the back of the caped man standing on the rooftop. Oblivious to the rain. Still frozen. He couldn't see his face, but the tension of his muscles spoke through his body.

The old man approached his long time friend and remained silent by his side. For a while.

Just a few seconds of ponder.

James Gordon had known Batman for years now. Not only that, but he understood him where many people just saw a dark vigilante. In the old man's eyes, he was far from being that, and James Gordon praised himself privately over being considered a friend of Batman.

"They were told to kill to protect a weapon against Superman." It wasn't really a question. It was a truth, that Batman hadn't seemed to take well.

"They killed your daughter because one man wanted to kill another," he simply stated. There was much more, of course, and he knew Lois would make it public. But Clark was at the core of it, as he had suspected from the beginning.

"They will pay for that," the commissioner said.

"They won't bring Barbara back."

He remained silent for a second. "No. That won't happen."

"She was involved because Superman had asked her to," he insisted.

That statement finally made Gordon realize. He knew that feeling very well.

"You think it is unfair."

"There is no justice when a life is taken."

"Barbara thought there was no justice in what Luthor was doing, did you know that?" Batman turned to look at him. "She told me. We spoke a lot about her work, once she revealed who she was. Not identities," he said, "she just gave me all she could to keep me safe, but also to be able to support herself on me. I was so proud. She made me so proud."

Bruce pressed his lips into a thin line. "I was too."

"Remember that night?," he asked. "When you rescued me from that fair?"

Beaten and psychologically tortured by the Joker using his own daughter, not even knowing if Barbara was alive, if the monster had raped her. "I can't forget it."

"You do recall what I said," he confirmed.

Our way has to work. "Yes."

"He also killed my wife. Because she chose to save those babies' lives. We caught him."

"You had him in front of you. Unarmed."

"My mind...it was out of my control. But still it went back to that night, and I wondered, if I had not spoken to you, if you would've finished it then. If my wife would be alive. If it had been my fault all along."

Bruce listened to him in complete silence.

"I don't know if you said anything to me that night, Batman. Everything is a blur. I can hardly remember. But I felt your presence, that's for sure. And I knew that, despite all the madness, despite the sense it did not make, I had done the right thing, painful as it was. I will never regret it. I guess that's also the only way to live through it. I served justice. If Superman had not asked my daughter to keep an eye on Luthor, Barbara would've ended up doing it herself. Because it was the right thing to do."

"Doesn't help feel any better."

"No. But it is what it is," sentenced Gordon. "However, there was one thing that did make me feel better."

"What was that?"

"Pulling the trigger on that bastard's knee. Making him squeal like a pig."

"Are you suggesting I do the same, Jim?"

"You don't need anyone to tell you what's the right or wrong thing to do, Batman." He paused. "The shot. It just made me feel good. For a few hours. It didn't take the pain away. Didn't give me closure. Just a slight relieve. But not everybody deserves that."

A slight relieve. Yes, maybe that was what Bruce needed. Not revenge. He knew Clark, he knew what he would and would not do. And then he realized they both needed to set things right, but it would have to be him, because Clark would not lift a finger against him. Now he knew what to do. But first things first. And there was a friend standing by his side. "You're leaving after this is over?"

"Yes."

"Will I see you again.?

The question almost made him chuckle. "I don't think I'll find your number on the book," he said.

The dark figure spoke softly and honest. "I will miss you, Jim."

And Gordon was moved by the blunt and unexpected display of care and affection. "I will keep an eye on you, though. To make sure you still do your work."

Bruce smiled. "If there's anything I can do for you..."

"You've done more than enough, my friend. More than I could've ever hoped for." The old man looked at the caped hero and extended his hand. "Goodbye, Batman."

Bruce took the hand and shook it. It wasn't enough.

James Gordon didn't foresee the hug, finding an unforeseen warmth in it. And that was their goodbye. Warm and honest, like somehow he realized their relationship had been over all those years.

***

The ceiling was white. It matched the peace he felt at that moment. Lex. Luthor. Was. Behind. Bars.

Ollie repeated the words mentally a few times. Tasting them, savoring them, believing them. It had finally happened. He closed his eyes to let the rest of his senses focus on the presence slowly stirring at his side. Feeling the warmth of the contact. And turning his head he opened his eyes to be welcomed by two blue orbs staring back at him, half open, making his lips curve up into a smile.

"Good morning."

"It is, isn't it?," said Dinah.

Ollie gently touched the purple skin on her face. "The swelling's almost gone."

"It hardly hurts now."

"And the ribs?," he asked checking if the bandages were still in place.

"Healing more slowly than I would like them to."

"Legs?"

"A big scare. But they're alright."

Ollie kissed her forehead. "Love you, pretty bird."

"Love you too."

"C'mere," he said, laying on his side and showing the space open for her to cuddle by his side, enveloping her softly with his arm so he didn't hurt her. "Heal a little longer with me, ok?"

"Gladly."

***

**Gotham City. Fifteen years ago.**

_"You think you can manage this?"_

_"I managed with the suicide squad well enough, thanks a lot for your confidence."_

_"A very questionable choice," he reminded her. Then opted to leave that subject aside and moved onto the present tense. "This is bigger, Barbara. You want to lead a group of women on your own."_

_She quirked a defiant eyebrow. "Scared of the competence?"_

_"I'm not letting you interfere in my city."_

_"Don't worry, Bruce, your precious Gotham is safe from me. You and your little acrobat can keep it to yourselves."_

_"Still not talking to Dick?," he asked in a more fatherly tone. Didn't mean Barbara appreciated the change._

_"My life is none of your concern, Bruce, so can it."_

_And so he did._

_"Who have you thought of?"_

_His relentlessness was endless. Barbara breathed inwardly and spoke in a low tone. "Dinah Lance."_

_"I don't think that's a good idea, Barbara."_

_"I don't recall asking for your opinion, Bruce."_

_A pause._

_"She's on a very dark place right now. Unstable."_

_"All the more reason to drag her out and give her something different and new to focus on. Her life's been one hell after another lately. I think it is about damn time someone gives her a hand. Because no- frikkin-body is doing a thing for her." _

_"Are we still talking about Dinah?"_

_For a few seconds the air could be cut with a knife._

_Bruce was pissing her off beyond her cartesian mind, and he knew it. But Barbara had known him for too long to let him win. He was testing her, and as annoying as it was, she knew he had his reasons. And damn good ones. He just aced at being an arrogant and irritating asshole. _

_"I am recruiting her, Bruce. I am giving her a few missions, see how it works. Then maybe I'll expand my horizons. I have a few other names on my list," she said defiantly._

_Bruce had his back turned, facing the computers instead of the woman usually commanding them. Something on the table caught his attention and he extended his hand towards it._

_Barbara saw a slight movement in the otherwise still form, but couldn't see what he was doing until she led her wheelchair to his level. He was holding a little yet significant object._

_"Some morbid sense of humor you have," he said quietly._

_Barbara looked at the small Batgirl doll in his hands. "It's a reminder."_

_"A reminder of what you cannot be anymore?"_

_Her hands tensed. She was sure her knuckles were white due to the pressure on the wheels' handles. But damned her if she let Bruce see it. Instead, she answered his question in a cool, not warm, voice._

_"A reminder of how hard I worked to get there an succeed. The same hard work I'm doing now. I'll be the best at what I can be today, Bruce. Now leave, I got a lot of work to do."_

_Barbara turned and never saw the proud expression hidden behind the cowl._

_*_

Bruce held the doll. "Hard worker. That you were, Barbara." Slowly, he placed it back on the drawer and took the small black box in his hand. Putting on the cowl, he headed out of the Batcave.

***

He entered through the bedroom, well aware of Lois not being there. Clark took a long breath, casted a quick glance received by a smile and composed himself before he walked towards the living room, where he found Lois looking at some papers, surely notes scribbled during some kind of individual brainstorm.

"Lois?"

"Hey, hon. Can you open that window?, I'm suffocating in here."

"It's late, sweetheart."

"I know, but I fell asleep when I shouldn't have. Now I can't close my eyes." Then she saw the box he was carrying. She knew that box. It was the vinyl collection box. "Is your mom redecorating?"

"No," he quietly said.

His heart was beating really fast now.

"Then why did you bring this here?"

"I though you might want to have them close," he said.

He wondered if Lois could hear the beating from where she was standing.

"Smallville, I'm not up for ambiguities tonight."

Ok. That was a bad start. How come he was so nervous when dealing with Lois? He opted for the rather direct approach, only drawing a big meander. "I'm bringing Chris back."

"Like, now?"

"Yes."

"Clark, that's...honey, that's great, but, have you talked to Bruce? Is he--how are we going to explain? We can't play ping pong with adoptions, you know?"

"We have the perfect cover, Lo." _Here goes nothing_. He took a breath and braced himself for whatever was to come. He couldn't keep them behind the door forever. "Chris never believed his mother was dead. We used some contacts and placed him in a special program. Now that he...he found her, he's back," he said as fast as he could.

"Clark, that is not funny," said a very serious Lois.

"I am not trying to be funny, Lo," he softly said. He placed the box on the floor and extended his hand. "Come."

Lois took it and let him lead her towards their bedroom and opened the door. Chris was there, she smiled happy that their son was finally back and--

"Chloe?"

*****

**Notes: **enjoy the cliffie, and thanks for the reviews again, they feel great and are very much appreciated :)

**Music notes: **

Bruce's and Gordon's scene was somewhat bittersweet. **Gusgus **"_Is Jesus your pal?_" fills the bitter part of it.

Saint Etienne "How we used to live": Dinah/Ollie's morning.


	22. Chapter 21: Defying The Odds

**Chapter 21 "Defying the odds"**

**Disclaimer: **not mine.

**Notes: **this scene was a stand-alone for me, thus it is the only one in this shorter chapter.

*****

She blinked. Twice. She had to. Because she couldn't believe her eyes. Or her brain telling her that what her eyes were seeing, whom her eyes were showing her standing right there, was real.

_How? _

Striken, she looked at Clark. Then at Chloe. Both were usually an open book to read. She could tell Chloe was as nervous as hell, surely awaiting for all Lane's hell to break loose on her, and Clark...

Clark looked as guilty as he was probably feeling.

He had known, she realized, and the weigh of having been concealing a truth from her, framed a rare mixture in between a wince and his guilty as charged look.

It was very unusual to see Lois Lane rendered silent. Normally, it never meant something good. Chloe knew. And the absence of voice in her cousin was killing her. She breathed and decided to break the ice.

One way or another this moment had to move towards something.

Anything.

"I guess a simple 'hi' is out of the question," she finally said.

The answer didn't make itself evasive. "You'd better have a very good, logic and big explanation for this," she said very low. Then, for the first time in seconds that seemed hours, she looked at Clark. "Both of you."

"I'm--"

"Smallville, if you start with your guilt line, I swear, you'll be regretting it even after I'm dead. The same goes for you, Chloe, so don't even think about it."

"I faked my death to protect you," she simply said. "So I did and I left."

At this point it was ridiculous to lie, and there was really no better explanation than the truth. That Lois might not understand it was a whole different thing.

"You left," she said repeating Chloe's words as if to believe them. "Just like that.

"Yes. As stupid as it sounds."

"You're damn right, Chloe. It is stupid."

Chloe saw the 'Lane, the big cousin' patronizing tone approaching. Probably the only thing she had not missed from her, and reacted to avoid it. "No. It wasn't really. It just looks like." She knew her actions were hard to explain. She knew a part of them had been an instinctive impulse, and as irrational, the only measurable aspects about them were the consequences. From Lois' point of view, the consequences were not that she had been given an oxygen balloon to her life by severing any ties to a very coveted target, as it had been shown all those years ago, for dangerous enemies of Clark. Or that she saw the analogy of a what if by learning from Barbara's death circumstances. No, from her perspective, all she saw was that her little cousin Chloe had left with lies and no explanation behind. And they had both suffered from it. Clark had told her that Lois had not taken her death lightly, but, looking into her eyes, she had not imagined that it had been so hard. Her mistake for underestimating her cousin's feelings. Or rather, for having blinded herself from what she knew Lois felt for her, so she could leave.

She tried to explain, using a softer tone. "There were a lot of things you didn't know about me then Lois. I don't expect you to understand them, but--"

"I won't understand them, Chloe, you're right. I don't know what you're talking about. I'm not sure I know the person I'm talking to right now," she said, hurting realization hitting hard at the truth behind those words.

Chloe winced.

And then, there was Clark. Lois could not believe it. "How could you keep that secret from me, Clark?"

Chloe spoke first, trying to excuse what, for Lois right now, was inexcusable. "I begged him not to tell you," she said. "It was my choice, and I know I put him in a very painful position. And I am sorry for that. But while I knew he'd be able to respect the separation, you wouldn't. You'd come after me, Lo, you know that. Hell, you did it when you believed I was dead those years ago, what the hell was I supposed to do?"

She was not referring to leaving. She was talking about having faked her death before her very eyes, and Clark knowing.

"Chloe." She let out a tired sigh.

Chris remained silent, watching and hurting for al three adults, looking lost as kids, trying to figure out the mess they were in.

"You didn't see her?," she asked softly.

"Not until recently," he half confessed. It wasn't his place to reveal Chloe's alter ego.

"And now," she said again to Chloe, "you're banking on me to understand and get on with our lives as if nothing happened?"

"No," said Chloe, no longer fighting to contain her tears. "There's a lot of healing ahead of us, Lo. But I do hope you give us a chance to get back where we were."

_Because you have no idea how much I've missed you and how much I want to jump and hug you and never let go__ again._

Lois let her emotions flow through her, but couldn't help it. There were questions she needed to ask, and something, she didn't know what, prevented her to get there and hug her cousin silly. She desperately needed to understand.

"Why now, what's changed?"

"There are no more ties to me that may put you in extra danger."

"Why? What made you so important? What consequences had your stay for me?"

"I think you know now," was the simple answer.

And the truth hit. "You are Oracle."

A single nod.

"And Watchtower before that."

Nod.

Lois had heard stories about Watchtower, shyly –now she knew why– spoken by Ollie and the rest. She just had assumed that Oracle was the former Watchtower taking a new identity when the computer whiz had started to fly solo. And Oracle, with newly strengthened ties with Clark, had died, murdered, showing just how powerful and resourceful Lex was, something Lois had underestimated many times. Now she realized Chloe had not, and saw the extent of that knowledge. Chloe had not underestimated it for a single time. And had fought, the only way she'd known at that moment, to spare her cousin such fate. Right or wrong, ridiculously stoic or brave beyond common sense. Chloe, little Chloe, her cousin, had decided to give up everything to try and help in saving her life.

The truth hit hard indeed.

"Lois, please, don't make me go through this now, just--"

Lois reacted to Chloe's words, leaving the pitbull behind and letting a timid smile at last make its way through her. "Chlo, I'm--"

"Dad?"

The worried tone on Chris' voice took both women out of their moment, and Lois' eyes opened wide in worry as she saw Clark stumbling, a lost look on his face.

Lois knew that look.

Nobody had noticed the presence standing on the window stepping in, a glowing green object in his hand.

"Chris, step out of the room, I don't want to hurt you." Batman looked at the small group gathered in the room. "Sorry, I didn't mean to startle you."

Her deceased cousin resurrected, her foster son, who she had not even talked to yet, back and Batman on her bedroom wearing a kryptonite ring. Was this some kind of stupid joke?

"Get that thing off. Now."

"It's ok, Lois," said Clark fighting the dizziness. "Chris, get out, I'll be fine." Adamantly, Chris complied, but never leaving his sight from Batman.

"I won't hurt him, son. Don't worry."

"Don't call me son," he said before getting out of the room, proudly concealing any symptom from the kryptonite.

Batman glanced the boy with respect before turning to Lois with a slight smirk. "He certainly takes after you, Lois."

Lois was not amused.

"The ring. Off. Now," she insisted.

He didn't comply.

"How did you get it?"

"I gave it to him," said Clark.

"You? Are you out of your stupid alien mind!!?"

"I know what I did, Lois," he said. "They said it was all because of me?," he asked Bruce. "Her death?"

"Yes."

"Are you taking me into custody?"

"No one in their sane minds would judge you for that, Clark, you know it. Least of them me."

"So?"

"I'm angry with you. Anger clouds my judgment, so I needed to get that out of my system."

"Beating the crap out of Clark on a non-equal fight? What is this, the battle of immature stupidity? Whose is bigger?"

None spoke. Lois was right about it, but, above that, this was something they had talked about. They didn't expect them to understand.

"Well, you've done so," said Chloe. "Put the ring out, please."

Bruce ignored both women. "We know this is a low dose. You can fight me, Clark."

"I don't want to fight you."

"I think I deserve it."

"Hit me if it makes you feel better. But I won't hit you."

Clark was already sweating, and feeling dizzy from the kryptonite. It was a small amount, but still hurt.

Lois was so focused on Clark that she didn't notice the beams of sweat forming on her forehead. Or the frown her eyebrows started to form on her face. Chloe did. "Lo?" She didn't figure out that something was going on until the sudden wave of nausea hit her stomach. But it wasn't until she fell hard on her knees, clutching her abdominal region with her hands and breathing hard in a sudden and obvious pain.

She noticed her cousin by her side almost immediately, checking her frantically.

"Lois, what's wrong?"

"I don't--I don't know, I...," she managed to say. Suddenly it was all too painful to focus.

Bruce ran to Lois' side, getting far from Clark to let him recover. The moment he kneeled by her side she screamed in pain, her face contorting and full of sweat. "It hurts!"

"Bruce, I don't know what's wrong with her," said a panicked Chloe.

"Help her please," said Clark while he fought the kryptonite symptoms. Chris rushed into the room but stopped sharply when he felt the nausea and pain. Bruce realized he still had the ring off and he quickly placed it back in the small box. Suddenly, Lois calmed down, her breathing going back to normal. Clark was already by her side. All traces of pain gone. From both.

"Hon, are you ok?," asked a desperate Clark. Lois slowly sat up, helped by Chloe and Clark.

"I...I don't know what happened, Clark, I was just...I'm ok, I'm ok now. Maybe it was the tension, I'm, I mean, with all that has been happening lately, I...," she said trying to reason.

None of them paid attention to the one man who knew what was going on. To the only person smiling in that room. Nevertheless he spoke. "Clark, I think you should take her to a doctor."

"Yes, yes, you're right. Come on, hon, I'll take you to the hospital."

"Smallville, I feel fine, really, I just--"

Bruce placed a hand on Clark's shoulder. So this time the kryptonian looked at him and saw the slight smile to erase his concern. "Not that kind of doctor." Then he kissed Lois on the forehead. "My apologies for my little outburst, Miss Lane. You take care of yourself now."

"See you around," he said to the very confused group gathered there. And he left, knowing realization would soon hit.

And he was right.

"I'll call Emil," said Clark.

"I'll go get my things."

Clark changed into his civilian clothes while he talked to Emil, and Lois took her shoes and a jacket, leaving a smiling Chloe and a very confused Chris behind.

"What just happened?," the boy asked.

"I think your parents have just defied and beat all imaginable odds, Chris."

*****


	23. Chapter 22: FifteenDay Lifetime

**Chapter 22 "Fifteen day lifetime"**

**Disclaimer: **not mine.

**Notes: **the last chapter of the story (remember, there's still one complete fic –Parachutes– to go) covers the 29th and 30th August.

*****

A blurry mass in different shades of grey displayed on the screen. Lois squinted her eyes, trying to figure out what kind of inside world was Emil contemplating. How could doctors distinguished anything in there?

And she meant anything.

Clark had brought them flying to see Emil. None had shared a word, but Lois had noticed the extra care he had taken when holding her, plus the annoying choice of flight speed, way too slow. As in 'if they had taken the car, they would've arrived earlier' slow.

Once there, they had still not spoken but to give Emil a pithy explanation of the events occurred earlier at their apartment.

Still, their constant little affective touching did not escape Emil's eyes. He couldn't help but smiling while he looked at the screen. "So her body reacted to kryptonite?," he asked.

Clark nodded while Lois kept squinting, clueless and silent, at the monitor. "Later than mine, but in the same way. And when Batman placed the ring on the box she recovered instantly."

Out of her trance, she came back. "Hey, hi," protested Lois. "I'm still here, you know. You can talk to me."

Emil chuckled. "You seemed too focused on the little guy," he said amused. "Didn't want to spoil the moment."

Clark's heart skipped a beat.

Lois' brain was not processing. "Yeah, well, don't do that again and say it, because, you know? We've been gassed for several weeks, so my body could just be reacting to that and this is just a Batman's stupid hunch and you and your silence while you look at that stupid grey screen which I don't understand and--" Clark's hand was squeezing harder than a few seconds ago. Then her brain wired back and she heard Emil's words. Somewhere in the middle, she found her voice again. "Little guy?"

"Two weeks."

She had to ask. She needed to know she had heard right. Although Clark's hand seemed to be completely aware and awake. He would not stop squeezing.

"Two weeks what?"

"Two weeks pregnant. Give or take a day."

Then her heart skipped the beat.

_Pregnant._

_Wow._

She didn't have time to ask anything else. Her mouth was suddenly silenced by Clark's. And before she realized it, she was in his arms. Flying. Enveloped in the most beautiful and comforting of warmths.

"I love you," he whispered between kisses. "I love you I love you I love you."

_Pregnant._

_Pregnant?_

"I...we...we did it?," she finally managed to say. "We..."

Clark chuckled at the sight. And loved her even more, if that was possible. "Looks like, Miss Lane."

"...How?"

He was as clueless as her, but he just didn't care right now. "I don't know," he said wearing a grin, "I guess there was a way after all."

All her senses went back into full gear, and Lois started rambling again, although with vivid, and excessive, logic.

"Clark, we should go back and talk to Emil, I mean, I--"

But Clark wasn't about to spoil the moment.

Lois was silenced once again by a kiss. "No."

She quirked an eyebrow. "What do you mean 'no'?"

He looked into those hazel eyes while he held her in mid air. "I mean not now. This moment, Lois" he softly spoke, "this moment is for us. You and me. No one else. Just you and me. No science. This is ours."

He stared deep, hoping to find a positive reaction in her.

Which came in the form of a pleased, amused and brilliant smile. "Two weeks?"

He nodded.

_Pregnant._

_Two weeks pregnant._

_With a baby._

_Theirs. Clark's and hers._

"We are quite the couple, Smallville."

Clark held and kissed her deeply, thanking the universe for the gift he'd been granted: Lois Lane.

The kissing did not stop when they returned home.

***

Dick waited patiently for the man to come out. He was selfishly not looking forward to having a meeting with him, because anything they talked would be painful, probably for both, but it had to be done. Commissioner Gordon came shortly after he arrived.

"I'm sorry for the wait, I had to attend a few calls."

"Duty cannot be avoided, sir, don't worry," said Dick bowing his head in respect.

"I got them transferred to a maximum security prison," informed the older man. "They'll wait for the trial there. The evidences you gave us are overwhelming, Nightwing. I don't think they'll get out of this one." He paused. "Sadly, I have my reserves towards Mr. Luthor. He is a very powerful man."

Dick reacted to the comment. "But...the videos and--"

"In my years of working I have learned many hard lessons, young man. One of them has been to never underestimate the power of certain people."

Dick remembered his conversation with Chloe the other day and her random comment about Luthor, one that had not skipped his memory. She had implied that very same thing, and she did have a history with Lex Luthor.

Gordon resumed his explanation, adding a positive note. "At least he is safely out of the presidential race. And that is good news, for sure."

"I guess we take what we can get, then," said Dick accepting all facts.

Gordon knew he was not just talking about Lex Luthor.

"This is life, you can never know for sure how fair or unfair it will be. You just do your best."

"I think it is past due time for it to get fair for you, sir."

Gordon let a bittersweet chuckle escape his lips. "One would think that, wouldn't he?"

Dick silently nodded.

"Sir, I also wanted to thank you for," he paused. "For letting us reveal Barbara's identity."

"It had to be done, so I did it. Don't...just let it be."

Dick understood, respected the wish and felt silent. And sorry. So very sorry.

"Son, I know I'm not the only one hurting," he told Dick. "Some mornings I wish I was, because the pain..." Then he stopped. "You must excuse me, I didn't want to make you feel uncomfortable."

Dick looked at him, also controlling his emotions. "Don't, sir. Don't ever apologize for that. Please."

Gordon smiled. "I won't," he conceded the younger man. "I'm leaving, as you probably know. I just wanted to tell you I know the city is in good hands. And I wanted to thank you for all you did."

His honest smile reminded Dick of Babs', just before she started teasing him.

Barbara enjoyed teasing Dick, so he had given up any resistance and had many times let her. He loved that smile so much that he did anything he could to unleash it.

He was glad to see that smile was not lost. There was one man carrying it on the outside, and he had the real one in his memory for the rest of his life.

***

_My hands are tied, why can't I free myself? Where's my strength?_

_Needles on my arms. They scare me. I'm not supposed to have needles piercing my skin__, right?. Dad told me that. He also told me the only thing making that possible would hurt so much that I wouldn't probably even be aware of any prickling sensation. And I am not the one hurting right now._

_My ears are pierced by an agonizing cry. I turn my eyes towards the source. It's a woman, and she is hurting. She in so much pain..., I don't know what they are doing to her, but when my thoughts are suddenly jerked away by a wave of pain, I can only figure out it must be something like this. The ache is so unbearable I can hardly notice the tube going down my throat._

"Chris. Chris, wake up."

_Breathe out._

"Hey."

_I open my eyes. They are met by two very concerned green orbs I have just met a few days ago._

"Chloe, I--"

Chloe placed a warm and protective hand on his cheekbone. "Are you ok?"

"I am awake now," he said smiling, waving the worry away. Or at least trying.

Chloe did not look to be about dropping the question. "Was it about what happened with you in the lab?"

But he had to admit she did it in a way he did not mind at all being asked.

"This dreams...," he explained, "they are like...some sort of flashbacks. But incomplete. I know it hurt. And there was a woman." He saw Chloe looking away for a second. "You told us the other day, you...you know her, right?"

She nodded sadly. "Yes. I think I know who she is. Her name is Tess. Tess Mercer."

"Mom also mentioned her a few times," he commented, but with a bit of a confused frown. "She didn't seem very fond of her."

Chloe chuckled. "Let's say she was never a friend of the family."

The serious tone returned to both.

"But she doesn't deserve that pain, right?"

Chloe had never been a supporter of nature on the nature versus nurture debate. Granted, she had always feared inheriting her mother's illness, but over genetic traits, behavior was a whole different matter. If she were to be similar to her mother somehow, it would be on the nurturing side of the bond between them. At least while it lasted.

Zod's legacy on this scared kid before her was heavy on her memory, she had to admit. But after meeting him, even if for a short span of time, there was much more of Clark in him that what she got to know from Zod. His genuine concern over Tess was a perfect example.

"Chloe, however evil she was, we have to get her out, she was...oh, she was hurting so much...I don't think anyone deserves that," he reasoned, "they... they were--"

Chloe placed her hand on his shoulder. "Chris, we are already working on that. We will get her out," she assured.

"She cried in pain," he softly said.

"So did you, right?," she spoke gently.

Timidly, he slightly nodded.

"I'll prepare you some tea. It'll make you feel better."

'In pain'. Chris pondered Chloe's remark.

_Yes, I was in pain, that's a given. But how to tell them everything? How would Dad react if he knew how much pain it took? _

_I have seen him defending his family._

_I don't want his darkness. I need his light. So I do not succumb to the darkness I know I have inside me. Heritage can be a curse. And I am the son of Zod after all._

***

It had taken Clark about two seconds to call Ollie and to visit Martha in Smallville to share the news. She had only managed to convince him to keep it a secret at work. They were pregnant and it was beyond incredible, and she was the first wanting, at last, to be able to talk about it. But with so many unanswered questions hovering over this miraculous conception, she couldn't help but to be cautious about it. At least until they knew how it was going to develop. Lois did not take well showing vulnerability, and only a very selected group of people had been invited to that very private moment of hers.

Presently, that was the group of people knowing that she was pregnant.

And she was starting to feel very, really annoyed by the constant care.

Clark wouldn't stop asking how she felt.

And it had just been a day.

Ollie...Ollie was plain static, displaying that stupidly gorgeous goofy grin of his.

She had to admit she did not mind that one. Until he started teasing Clark.

Then, she had enjoyed him knowing about the baby even more.

Lois had made a mental note to try and spend more time with Ollie during the pregnancy.

Dinah.

The minute she had known, Dinah had turned into some kick-ass mother hen-ed overprotective bodyguard, starting to design schedules and security protocols.

Just a day. And she could label her friends' reaction.

Good grief.

Lois had made a mental note to try and spend more time with Ollie during the pregnancy, with Dinah _not_ around.

Martha...

Martha could do and say whatever she wanted. She was Martha Kent. Case closed.

Chloe...

With all that had happened, she had not had a chance to talk to her. And there was a Talk to have between them. But Chloe's smile at Bruce's revelation of her state hadn't escaped her sight.

And the thought of her cousin being alive...

Now, more calmed, in retrospective, she even understood. A little.

But most importantly, she couldn't wait to see her.

There was just a little thing to do before that.

*****

Lex was guarded in a high security prison, location unknown. The League had insisted on managing security until the hearing. That single fact had allowed Lois to get inside the place, not without Clark's objection and the condition that she would get in, say whatever she needed to say, and get out.

And under no circumstance whatsoever, she would go in alone.

Ollie and Dinah were getting off her nerves.

"Will you two stop it already?"

"Stop what?," asked Ollie trying to hide his grin.

"That. You're both acting all giddily."

"You're exaggerating, Lane."

Lois quirked an eyebrow.

"No, she's not," said Dinah. "But we're so excited for you, sweetie."

Lois looked at her. Happy. For the first time in long months...

Suddenly, she felt like crying. Lois shook her head. This hormonal thing was going to be very difficult to handle.

"Are you alright?" Before Lois could even realize that her thoughts had changed her expression, the formerly smiling Dinah had turned into Mother hen Dinah, examining her with concerned eyes.

Really, very difficult to handle.

She wished she hadn't been right about the tags she'd put on their take on the pregnancy.

Lois rolled her eyes. "I am fine. Nothing's wrong with me and I'm happy you're both happy for us. But I'd like to enter that cell with two serious and imposing bodyguards, not two plain static friends. So get a grip, will you?"

"Lois, are you sure about this?"

"I want to look him into the eye, Ollie. I want to keep the vision of Lex behind bars in my retina. I've earned it."

"Ok. But we'll go in with you. We're under Clark's orders, just so you know," said Dinah.

"And don't you go all eye rolling on us," added Ollie knowing her all too well.

That earned them a smile despite Lois.

"Fine. Open the door," she finally conceded once she was sure she could keep a blank stare.

Dinah pressed the button and the three of them entered. Lex was held in an isolated cell. Lois remembered the first time she came to Smallville. Of her trip to Metropolis' prison, to confront Lionel when they thought Chloe was dead. Maybe Lionel turned up good, as Clark assured her one too many times. But she couldn't help thinking; like father, like son. Only there was no redemption for Lex.

"My. Had I known you were coming I would have dressed appropriately. Such a refined guest," he said mockingly.

"Orange's perfect," said Lois. "I brought you the press," said Lois. "Fresh from the oven, Lex." Lex turned. He smirked, and Lois wanted to get inside and beat the crap out of him. "Want to know what is it about?"

Lex looked at her for a few seconds. Nobody moved. But Lex would never take that evil smirk off his face. "Thank you for keeping me informed, Miss Lane. No, I know what is it about." He showed her a newspaper in his hands. "They were kind enough to give me the newspaper this morning. Nice article, Miss Lane. I didn't expect less from you."

"I'm glad you still enjoy reading, Lex. Looks like you're going to have plenty of time to do that now."

Lois turned to leave, followed by Green Arrow and Canary. Lex looked at her and waited. Patiently. Tasting the incoming victory. When the door was open and she was about to leave, he made his move.

"Oh, by the way. I heard congratulations are in order."

**fin**

*********

**Music notes: **

**Moby and Amaral** '_Slipping away_' This song (Spanish version of Moby's Slipping away) is a mixture of disbelief and hope that fitted Chris inner conflict the way I wanted. He's just a kid, and he's very confused. (_Why is it so difficult to believe that there will be no tomorrow?_)

_**Muse**_ _'Take a Bow'_. For Lex.

Bonus track: _**Pearl Jam**_ _Inside Job_

***** *** *** *** *****

Next: "_**Parachutes**_", last on the series. Everything will come to an end, so any plotlines you might have found incomplete like "where the hell is Chloe and Lois' talk?" or the pregnancy itself and things like that, are meant to be on "_**Parachutes**_"

A sneak peak in raw dialogue, some snippets that came through while I plotted the story:

*

"(...)I'm going to choke him until he turns purple and--"

"Don't you think that maybe you're overreacting?"

"Overreacting? Really? After twelve years mourning my cousin's death, I find out that she's alive and every-frikking-body knew it except me! When I'm not recovered from the shock, I find out I'm pregnant, just because Batman thought it could be fun to beat the crap out of my 'husband' with a kryptonite ring. _Your_ kryptonite ring, and now I know I'm affected too, for who knows how long! It'll probably pass after the pregnancy. And do we know exactly how long this pregnancy is going to be?"

"..."

"Figures. And then, out of the blue, Clark's worst enemy, his nemesis, his biggest threat, who knows his secret, turns out he also knows mine (...), Really, Ollie, is it even possible to overreact to that? God I need a drink."

*

"It's good, honey, I don't think the world is ready for other kryptonians right now. The suit will make them think your powers come from it."

"Like Iron man? Wow..."

"Yeah. But the name...you have to change it. It's already taken."

–Chris is a kid. Chris reads comics. Marvel comics is the SV/DCU!comic fandom in here–

*

"Hey, if Babs had allowed men on her team I would've sent her my resume to be closer to you."

"Figures. Probably you and Bruce were the reason why she just chose us."

*

All I can say is that _**Parachutes**_ is going to take a while. The plot is more complex because it jumps a little through time and it ties and closes every open storyline created through the arc; I need some refreshment and life is coming hitting this next months with some impending matters, so I'm going to let _**Parachutes**_ ferment a little, I really want to make it worth the write/read, and getting right into it now would be a mistake on my part. It needs some re-plotting due to last minute changes in _Inside_ before it actually goes through the writing process. So if I write something new these next months, it'll probably be shorter fics to refresh the brain a little and not necessarily on this fandom.

Thanks for reading and commenting, all feedback feels/has felt awesome.

*****


End file.
